Shaoyang Xian Zhi. A Gazetteer / Chronicle of Shaoyang County, Hunan Province, China.

Printed by Da Zhan Letterpress, printing bureau of Shaoyang, 1875 (1st year of Guang Xu, Qing Dynasty). First edition. TEXT in CHINESE.

Six volumes, wrappers, 5.25x8.5 inches (13.5x21 cm). Four of the volumes have several sections, each paginated separately. Pagination: Volume One: 2, 46, 20, 30, 26 pp; Volume Two: 34, 37, 26, 36 pp; Volume Three: 76, 47 pp.; Volume Four: 120 pp.; Volume Five: 108 pp.; Volume 6: 96, 5 pp.

The previous owner left a couple typed notes (with some handwritten additions) that describe the contents of the volume as follows:

Vol. 1: Tome 1: Harvest; Tome 2: Landscape; Tome 3: Construction; Tome 4: School.

Vol. 2: Tome 5: Ancestral Temple; Tome 6: Finance; Tome 7: Officials; Tome 8: Election.

Vol. 3. Political, Academic, and Meritorious Personages.

Vol. 4: Moral Personages.

Vol. 5: Examples, women.

Vol. 6: Miscellaneous.

FAIR Condition: the wrappers are chipped, worn along the edges, and have tears of various lengths; many of the wrappers are disbound, the rest tenderly attached; the front cover of Volume One has been replaced with a blank (same paper as the other wrappers but no printed title), has a long tear, and is detached along with a few of its initial leaves; the spine covering of all the volumes has perished; overall the wrappers are weary and tender but present. Internally, the pages are age toned, have some edgewear, edge chips, tears, and faint dampstaining; some of the early and latter pages of various volumes are disbound but present; the paper is fragile and chips easily, so small fragments come off with handling. Please handle this treasure with care. Despite the flaws, this is a complete and very rare set of these six volumes.

SCARCE original source documents. This is the only 19th century chronicle of Shaoyang County that I have ever seen.