Wooden Movable-type Printing of China中国活字印刷术

Juno

古代中国的四大发明包括指南针、造紙术、印刷术和火药，它们是中国在人类文明史上占有重要地位的标志之一。活字印刷术的出现，大大促进了文化的传播，对世界经济的发展和人类文明的进步做出了巨大贡献。

The block printing technology in our country was probablyinvented in the seventh century， and reached its climax in the tenthcentury in the Song Dynasty. With the block printing technology，such procedures as writing samples， 1）carving blocks， sprayingthe ink and printing were involved in the process of publishing abook， and it was always time-consuming and costly in the use ofthe material resources and 2）manpower to print a work of greatlength. The procedures would have to be repeated if other bookswere to be published， hence peopleconducted active 3）explorationsand strived for improvements，which led to the eventualinvention of the movablec l a y - t y p e p r i n t i n gtechnology by a mancalled Bi Sheng duringthe period of Qingli of the Northern Song Dynasty， as can be proved by the account of thebook Dream Pool Essays by Bi Sheng’s contemporary， Shen Kuo.From then on， the moveable-type printing technology was applied，and it was about 400 years earlier than that used in Europe whenGerman Gutenburg， for the first time， printed the Bible with this verytechnology.

Before printing was invented， a scholar had to copy charactersone by one if he wanted to publish a new book. During the NorthernSong Dynasty， Bi Sheng invented the movable-type printing aftermany years of experimentation. He 4）engraved the characterson small pieces of clay， and heated them until they became hardmovable characters. When printing a book， people placed themovable characters in order into a whole block and then ran off a print. After printing， they took the block apart and reused thecharacters later. This method was both economical and time-saving.China’s movable-type printing first spread eastward into DPRK andJapan， then westward into Persia and Egypt， and at last， around theworld. The invention of movable-type printing greatly promoted thecultural exchanges among countries all over the world.

During the period of the Yuan Dynasty， Wang Zhen learned touse the movable wood types to print books. There are， becauseof the differences of the times and materials， different names forthe movable-type printing， such as the movable clay-type printing，magnetic printing， movable wood-type plate， movable copper-typeprinting， movable lead-type printing and movable tin-type printing.During the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty， wooden movable-typeprinting experienced a golden age， with many craftsmen creating5）intricate pieces of art by combining printing and calligraphy. Andit is estimated that 200 million books and various block prints wereproduced using this method during this time.

With the rise of modern technology in the twentieth century，wooden movable-type printing fell out of popularity and stoppedbeing used for mass production of printed books. The culturalsignificance of wooden movable-type printing goes beyond itspractical implications. This method of printing provided an idealmedium for disseminating information， ideas， and culture throughoutthe region.

The wooden movable-type printing technique was listed onthe National Intangible Cultural Heritage on June 14， 2008. And onNovember 15， 2010， it was listed on the List of Intangible CulturalHeritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding by the UNESCO. We can see that this technique is endangered that only a few districts keepsthe custom of revising pedigrees in China.

In recent years， local organizations such as museums， schoolsand cultural centers have started preserving and displaying woodenmovable-type printing and its related artifacts， allowing visitors toexplore the art and culture of the craft. They also organize relevantworkshops and activities to help local craftsmen pass on their skillsand knowledge to younger generations. Additionally， the governmenthas taken steps to protect the craft by providing financial subsidiesand setting up awards， in order to ensure its future development.

1） carve v. 刻；雕刻

2） manpower n. 人力；人手

3） exploration n. 探索；探究

4） engrave v. 在……上雕刻

5） intricate adj. 錯综复杂的

中国雕版印刷技术大约发明于公元7 世纪，在10 世纪的宋代达到鼎盛。使用这种技术出版一套书须经过写样、刻版、涂墨、印刷等多道工序，如果是要印一部大著作，往往要花费大量的物力、人力和时间。假如要再出版其他书，这些工序又得重新来过，因此人们积极探索，努力改进，终于在北宋庆历年间，毕昇发明了胶泥活字印刷技术。此事记载于与毕昇同时期的沈括的《梦溪笔谈》一书中，从此活字印刷术开始被使用。它比欧洲最先用铅活字印刷术印《圣经》的德国谷腾堡要早约400 年。

印刷术发明之前，想出版新书的学者必须一字一句地抄写。北宋时期，经过多年试验，毕昇发明了活字印刷术。他把汉字刻在一小块泥坯上，加热汉字泥坯直到其变成硬质的活字。印书时， 人们按顺序将活字摆在一起，印出印迹。印刷完后，他们把字分开，以便重复使用。这种方法既经济又省时。中国的活字印刷术首先向东传至朝鲜和日本，之后向西传至波斯和埃及，最后传遍全球。活字印刷术的发明大大促进了世界各国的文化交流。

到了元代，王祯发明了用木活字印书。活字版因时代、材料不同而有不同的名称，有“泥活字版”“磁版”“木活字版”“铜活字版”“铅活字版”“锡活字版”等。在明清时期，木活字版印刷术经历了一个黄金时代，许多工匠结合印刷和书法创作出精美的艺术品。据估计，当时约有2 亿册书和各种平版印刷品是用这种方法生产的。

随着20 世纪现代技术的兴起，活字印刷术不再流行，不再被用于大批量印刷书籍。活字印刷术的文化意义远远超出了它的实际意义。这种印刷方式为传播信息、思想和文化提供了理想的媒介。

2008 年6 月14 日，木活字印刷术被国务院确定为国家级非物质文化遗产，在2010 年11 月15 日，又被联合国教科文组织列入《急需保护的非物质文化遗产名录》。由此可见，木活字印刷术仍是一项濒临灭绝的技艺，除了少数地区延续修订族谱的习俗，在中国，大部分地区已经没有这项习俗。

近年来，当地的博物馆、学校、文化中心等组织开始保护和展示活字印刷术的相关文物，让参观者探索这门手艺承载的艺术与文化。他们还组织相关的研讨会和活动，帮助当地工匠将技能和知识传递给年轻一代。此外，政府也已经采取措施保护这项手艺，通过提供财政补贴，设立奖项，以确保其未来发展。