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Coda

from II - Astronomical Calendars

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 March 2018

Edward M. Reingold
Affiliation:
Illinois Institute of Technology
Nachum Dershowitz
Affiliation:
Tel-Aviv University
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Summary

I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.

Ralph Waldo Emerson: Journal (May, 1849)

The following description of the presentation of the annual calendar in China is taken from Peter (Pierre) Hoang (A Notice of the Chinese Calendar and a Concordance with the European Calendar, 2nd edn., Catholic Mission Press, Shanghai, 1904):

Every year, on the 1st of the 2nd month, the Board of Mathematics presents to the Emperor three copies of the Annual Calendar for the following year, namely in Chinese, in Manchou and in Mongolian. Approbation being given, it is engraved and printed. Then on the 1st of the 4th month, two printed copies in Chinese are sent to the Fan-t‘ai (Treasurer) of each province, that of Chih li excepted; one of which, stamped with the seal of the Board of Mathematics, is to be preserved in the archives of the Treasury, while the other is used for engraving and printing for public use in the province.

On the 1st day of the 10th month, early in the morning, the Board of Mathematics goes to offer Calendars to the Imperial court. The copies destined to the Emperor and Empresses are borne upon a sedan-like stand painted with figures of dragons (Lung t‘ing), those for the Princes, the Ministers and officers of the court being carried on eight similar stands decorated with silk ornaments (Ts‘ai-t‘ing). They are accompanied by the officers of the Board with numerous attendants and the Imperial band of music. On arriving at the first entrance of the palace, the Calendars for the Emperor are placed upon an ornamented stand, those for other persons being put upon two other stands on each side. The copies for the Emperor and his family are not stamped with the seal of the Board of Mathematics, while the others are. The middle stand is taken into the palace, where the officers of the Board make three genuflections, each followed by three prostrations, after which the Calendars are handed to the eunuchs who present them to the Emperor, the Empress-mother, the Empress and other persons of the seraglio, two copies being given to each, viz.

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Calendrical Calculations
The Ultimate Edition
, pp. 385 - 386
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2018

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  • Coda
  • Edward M. Reingold, Illinois Institute of Technology, Nachum Dershowitz, Tel-Aviv University
  • Book: Calendrical Calculations
  • Online publication: 22 March 2018
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781107415058.025
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  • Coda
  • Edward M. Reingold, Illinois Institute of Technology, Nachum Dershowitz, Tel-Aviv University
  • Book: Calendrical Calculations
  • Online publication: 22 March 2018
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781107415058.025
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Coda
  • Edward M. Reingold, Illinois Institute of Technology, Nachum Dershowitz, Tel-Aviv University
  • Book: Calendrical Calculations
  • Online publication: 22 March 2018
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781107415058.025
Available formats
×