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Manuscript Monday - The Original Wikipedia: 18th Century Chinese Emperor Qianlong’s Siku Quanshu Project

Monday, April 3, 2023: 8:00PM-9:00 Eastern, 5:00PM Pacific.
The Original Wikipedia: 18th Century Chinese Emperor Qianlong’s Siku Quanshu Project. Susan Lahey, MA ISA-CAPP.

The Emperor Qianlong, a prolific poet, major art patron, and insatiable collector, ordered the largest encyclopedic compilation of books in Chinese history. Within 10 years, a team of more than 350 scholars and hundreds of editors had compiled 36,381 volumes (2.3 million pages) of the Siku Quanshu (also known as the Complete Library in Four Sections). Seven copies were made, four of which survive today in Chinese libraries. Join Susan to learn more about this “wikipedia” of Chinese literature, history, philosophy, and classic texts, as well as the remarkable Qing dynasty Emperor Qianlong who ordered its creation.

Susan Lahey, MA, ISA CAPP, is certified appraiser of personal property with a speciality in Asian art, specifically focusing on Chinese decorative and fine art, and professional member of the International Society of Appraisers. Ms. Lahey holds an Honours BA in Chinese Studies from the University of Toronto, an MA in Classical Chinese Literature from the University of British Columbia, and a Post-Graduate Diploma with Distinction in Asian Art from the School of Oriental & African Studies (University of London, England) and Sotheby’s Educational Studies. Susan lived in Taipei, Taiwan for two years continuing her Mandarin studies and travelling extensively in Asia to study Chinese art collections. She is the President of Eastern Art Consultants Inc., providing independent appraisal, research, advisory and collection management services since 2010. Previously, she has worked at the Royal Ontario Museum in various capacities, as well as leading the Asian art department of a local Toronto auction house for six years. Ms. Lahey is a highly sought-after instructor of Asian Ceramics and Chinese Decorative Arts specialty courses.

Apr 3, 2023 08:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)