Five Lost Classics: Tao, Huang-lao, and  Yin-yang in Han China (Classics of Ancient China)
The funeral objects excavated at a southern Chinese cite called Mawangdui in 1973 have proven to be some of the finest caches of "grave goods" retrieved during this century. In addition to splendid lacquerwares and silks, which have shed new light on the artistic achievements of the early Han dynasty, the diggings have yielded a treasure house of manuscripts written on silk. Noted historian Yates (McGill Univ., Montreal) correctly likens the Mawangdui texts to the Dead Sea Scrolls in the West. The author has chosen to translate five Daoist texts, documents written to advise ruling Han dynasty authorities on how to attune themselves to the cosmos at a time of rapidly changing political and social climate. His work will be especially useful to students of classical Chinese because the translation is paired with the original text, and the entire work is painstakingly annotated and preceded by an illuminating introduction and commentary. For special collections.?John H. Boyle, California State Univ., ChicoCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.