The wisdom of the ages, in a stone library from Xi’an
For centuries, important texts in China have been engraved in stone to protect them from loss due to fire and counterfeiters. This is the most important collection of such monumental tablets in China. Some of the 3,200 tablets, of which 1,700 are on display, are 2,000 years old. The largest project was completed in 837, when 114 tablets containing the canonical works of Confucianism were finished. The “Nestorian Stele,” marked with a cross, confirms the existence, in 781, of a Christian community in Chang'an, today called Xi'an. The various calligraphic styles are beautiful. It is interesting to watch how rubbings are made, and they are for sale here. A side hall displays monumental stone animals and tomb reliefs from the Han to the Tang dynasties as well as Buddhist sculpture.
