In his long years of investigation of Yongle Northern Canon, the author has taken notice of the seal impressions he found in the extant copies in libraries and temples in the world. The Yongle Northern Canon was initiated and constructed by the Imperial Court. It is natural that the emperor and empress stamped their seals on the Buddhist canon they presented to Buddhist temples. The author has collected as many seals prints as possible and tried to analyze them in the social and historical contexts. These seals may be used to do the following: To determine the dating of the copies that were printed, for example, Empress Li’s seal 慈聖宣文明肅皇太后之寶. To enhance our understanding of the persons involved in the imperial court, such as “Wan Wei zhizhang 萬煒之章” and “Taifuzhiyin 太傅之印.” To demonstrate the auspices of the imperial court, such as “Guangyunzhibao 廣運之寶.” The author also discusses cases when the seals are absent in some copies in the Yongle Northern Canon.
目次
Abstract 65 1. Introduction 66 2. The Seals at Princeton University 68 3. Empress Dowager Li's Seal in othe Libraries and Temples 80 4. Other Seals 83 5. Epilogue 88 Postscript 90 Bibliography 91
