From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Four Great Books of Song (simplified Chinese: 宋四大书; traditional Chinese: 宋四大書; pinyin: Sòngsìdàshū) was compiled by Li Fang (925-996) and others during the Song Dynasty (960–1279). The term was coined after the last book (Cefu Yuangui) was finished during the 11th century. The four encyclopedias were published and intended to collect the whole knowledge of the new state.

The four books are:

• Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era is a general encyclopedia.
• Extensive Records of the Taiping Era is a collection of gods, deities, fairies, ghost stories and theology.
• Finest Blossoms in the Garden of Literature is an anthology of poetry, odes, songs and other writings.
• Prime Tortoise of the Record Bureau is an encyclopedia of political essays, autobiographies, memorials and decrees.

See also

• Chinese classic texts

External links

• http://www.chinaknowledge.de/Literature/literature.html
• History of China: A good collection of information on Chinese history