Printed over 1100 years ago, a chinese copy of the diamond sutra at the. It was found in a holy site called the mogao or peerless caves or the. What is the earliest known printed text in 868 answers. Although there are block prints that preceded this, they are either not dated or no longer in existence. The story of the worlds earliest dated printed book wood, frances, barnard, mark on. The oldest printed work in the world, which dates back to. The diamond sutra is a teaching from the buddha himself. The final answer to this question was accepted in july 2009. The worlds earliest complete, dated and printed book goes back to may 11, 868. It is a 16 feet long scroll printed on a wood block in 868 ce. The oldest complete, printed and dated book to have survived is. This 15th century gutenberg bible is pretty old but not nearly old enough to hold the record as the oldest book in the world. The artifact was discovered along with other printed manuscripts, in a walledup cave in dunhuang means blazing beacon, located in jiuquan of northwest chinas gansu province in 1907.
The diamond sutra, the earliest dated example of woodblock printing, and the earliest surviving dated complete book, was published in china on may 11, 868. The diamond sutra is the oldest known dated printed book ce 868, it was made by using block printing. Equally incorrect are websites whose claims are based on the premise that a book is a printed object. While there are no surviving examples of the chinese printing presses of the 11th century, the oldest surving dated printed book on record is the budhist diamondsutra, dated 11 may 868 ad.
Oldest printed book published national geographic society. And yet, this work came to the limelight only in the early 20th century. It was produced on the 11 may 868, according to the western calendar. The version of the book printed in 868 is a collection of seven rectangular woodblock prints pasted together to form a scroll. Here are some of the oldest surviving books in the world. What is the title of the oldest book in print today. The worlds oldest printed book was produced in china in 868 ad. Diamond sutra, first printed book on 11 may 868 ce. With news this week of the discovery of what could be the earliest known siddur, a jewish prayer book dated at around 840 ad we have put together a list of 10 of the oldest known surviving books in the world today writing and literature are thought to have been first developed between the. Name the oldest japanese book printed in 868 ad answers. The diamond sutra, which bears the date 868 ad, was found in a walledup cave in dunhuang, northwest china, in 1907, along with other.
Diamond sutra, first printed book on 11 may 868 ce history. The printing itself was done using large wooden blocks and, although earlier printed books have survived, this copy of the diamond sutra is the. The diamond sutra, the oldest printed text in the world, goes to press. Oldest printed book published on may 11, 868, publishers in china printed the diamond sutra, today the oldest surviving dated, printed book. Printing is considered one of the four great inventions of china.
Or that by the time gutenberg got ink on his fingers nearly 600 years later and his revolutionary technology helped usher in the enlightenment. However, a common answer to the question would be the chinese diamond sutra because it is the oldest known dated printed book in the world, printed in the 9th year of xiantong era of the tang dynasty, i. Five things to know about the diamond sutra, the worlds oldest. For those of you who dont already know this book is one of several thousand copies printed by a man named wang ji in 868, making it the oldest known printed book, 500 years older that gutenbergs bible. The oldest complete, printed and dated book to have survived is the diamond sutra. Europe in metz, charles the bald and louis the german decide on a division of the lands of former emperor. The diamond sutra, a buddhist book from dunhuang, china from around 868 a. The exact date of the composition of the diamond sutra in sanskrit is uncertainarguments for the 2nd and 5th centuries have been made. The diamond sutra, the earliest surviving dated complete. This book now resides at the british museum in london.
Golden etruscan orphic book six golden pages of the. Johannes gutenberg invented the printing press around 1440 and the holy bible, popularly known as gutenberg bible or 42line bible, is widely acclaimed as the first major book mass printed in europe with the movable metal type printing press tha. The diamond sutra is the worlds oldest known printed book. The oldest printed work in the world, which dates back to ad 868 is. The oldest extant printed book is a work of the diamond sutra and dates back to 868 ad, during the tang dynasty. The worlds earliest dated printed book created in china. The precise date makes this particular edition of diamond sutra the worlds oldest printed and dated book in existence. Smart news keeping you current five things to know about the diamond sutra, the worlds oldest dated printed book printed over 1,100 years ago, a chinese copy of the diamond sutra at the british. The fascinating discovery of the worlds oldest book. Notoc eventsby placeasia 11 may the diamond sutra, the oldest dated book, is printed.
Thus the oldest book in the world must surely be the gutenberg bible oldest printed book in the west, from c. The buddhist text known as the diamond sutra is believed to be the oldest surviving printed book in the world. This article by eric baxter of represents the best answer to the question that i have ever seen. There are 48 original copies in known existence, of which 21 are complete. Bbc news entertainment oldest printed book on display. The first chinese translation dates to the early 5th century, but, by this point, the 4th or 5th century monks asanga and vasubandhu seem to have already authored authoritative commentaries on its content the vajracchedika sutra was an influential work in. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The manuscript was one of many discovered in the mogao caves of dunhaung, china a daoist monk, wang yuanlu, discovered the socalled dunhaung manuscripts in 1900. The diamond sutra is part of a larger canon of early mahayana sutras known as the prajnaparamita meaning perfection of wisdom sutras. The diamond sutra, the earliest surviving dated complete printed.
The earliest known printed text is from about 650 a. A book thought to be the oldest surviving printed book in the world has gone on display at the british library. Seven strips of yellowstained paper were printed from carved wooden blocks and pasted together to. The last few lines of the text, the colophon, identifies who printed it, when and why. This copy of the diamond sutra in chinese language, complete with a beautifully illustrated frontispiece, is the worlds earliest dated, printed book. The only religious book ever printed in a shorthand scripts is. A desert explorer, buddhas secret library, and the unearthing of the worlds oldest printed book. Printed by johannes gutenberg, in mainz, germany, it is considered to be oldest printed book using movable type in the west though in china there were examples of book printing many centuries earlier, such as the diamond sutra. Printed copy of the diamond sutra the british library. On may 11, 868, publishers in northern china printed the diamond sutra, which survives as the oldest dated, printed book.
Five things to know about the diamond sutra, the worlds oldest dated printed book printed over 1,100 years ago, a chinese copy of the diamond sutra at the british library is. The diamond sutra, which bears the date 868 ad, was found in a walledup cave in dunhuang, northwest china, in 1907, along with other printed items. Few venture that the answer is a revered buddhist text called the diamond sutra, printed in 868 a. A copy of this sacred text, which was discovered in the mogao caves of dunhuang, china, has been described as being the worlds earliest complete survival of a dated printed book. But printing the art of stamping inks onto paper to make books and images had been around for a long time. This is the oldest known printed book with an explicit date mentioned on it. On may 11, 868, the diamond sutra was published in northern china this priceless religious teaching survives as the oldest dated, printed book. Reverently made for universal free distribution by wang jie on behalf of his two parents, 11 may 868. The oldest printed work in the world dating back to ad 868 is the hirake sutra. Five things to know about the diamond sutra, the worlds.
Tool of engraving is the burin, a sharp, vshaped instrument. Entertainment oldest printed book on display bbc news. A desert explorer, buddhas secret library, and the unearthing of the worlds oldest printed book morgan, joyce, walters, conrad on. A copy of the diamond sutra is printed in china, making it the oldest known dated printed book.
The diamond sutra was printed by method of woodblock printing, a strenuous method in which the text to be printed would be carved into a woodblocks surface, essentially to be used to stamp the words onto the writing surface medium. Ask people to name the worlds oldest printed book and the common reply is gutenbergs bible. Or that by the time gutenberg got ink on his fingers nearly 600 years later and his. D, although many believe they will find older ones in the future, and the earliest full printed book is from 868 a. The instructions on the book by the printer, wang jie say that it be given away for free. Carved wooden blocks were used to print this copy on a scroll made from. A chinese version of a key text in the mahayana buddhist tradition, this diamond sutra. The book earns its name from being as short it can be chanted in about 40 minutes and sharp as a.
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