China's transition to modernity : the new classical vision of Dai Zhen / Minghui Hu.
Includes bibliographical references and index.

The man and his times -- How Jesuit science conquered the Kangxi court -- Searching for truth in the origins of civilizations -- How to build a coalition around science -- An outsider enters the mainstream -- How to dethrone Jesuit science -- Bringing it home to the palace of light -- Legibility of visionary scholars.

Local access dig.pdf. [Hu-China's Transition.pdf]

Gardens of a Chinese emperor : imperial creations of the Qianlong Era, 1736-1796 / Victoria M. Cha-Tsu Siu ; with the posthumous assistance of Kathleen L. Lodwick.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 251-259) and index.

Experiencing the garden of perfect brightness (Yuanming Yuan) -- Qianlong's garden of everlasting spring (Changchun Yuan) -- The garden of the clear ripples (Qingyi Yuan) on longevity hill (Shou Shan) -- The garden of tranquil luminescence (Jingming Yuan) on Jade Spring Hill (Yuquan Shan) -- The garden of quiet delight (Jinyi Yuan) on fragrant hill (Xiang Shan).

"The Garden of Perfect Brightness (Yuanming Yuan) in the western suburbs of the Qing capital, Beijing, was begun by the great Kangxi (r. 1661-1722) and expanded by his son, Yongzheng (r. 1722-1735) and brought to its greatest glory by his grandson, Qianlong (r. 1736-1796). A lover of literature and art, Qinglong sought an earthly reflection of his greatness in his Yuanming Yuan. For many years he designed and directed an elaborate program of garden arrangements. Representing two generations of painstaking research, this book follows the emperor as he ruled his empire from within his garden. In a landscape of lush plants, artificial mountains and lakes, and colorful buildings, he sought to represent his wealth and power to his diverse subjects and to the world at large. Having been looted and burned in the mid-nineteenth century by western forces, it now lies mostly in ruins, but it was the world's most elaborate garden in the eighteenth century. The garden suggested a whole set of concepts-religious, philosophical, political, artistic, and popular-represented in landscape and architecture. Just as bonsai portrays a garden in miniature, the imperial Yuanming Yuan at the height of its splendor represented the Qing Empire in microcosm."--back cover.

Preserved in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, the kesi (silk tapestry) of the British Embassy has been exhibited in the context of Europe’s economic, cultural and exploitative encounters with the Americas, Africa and Asia. The kesi, which has contributed to the misinterpretation of China’s practice of foreign relations, provides invaluable insight into the political strategies of the Qianlong Emperor in the face of British imperialism. The work commemorates the infamous meeting between the Emperor and the English ambassador George Macartney in 1793. The event marks the failed negotiation between two incommensurable power systems due to conflicting interests and grave misunderstandings on both sides. Yet in English and Chinese language histories, the failed negotiation is often attributed to the backwardness of China’s practice of foreign relations. Within the context of historical writing and museum display, the kesi is made to emphasize the Emperor’s cultural blindness and ignorance of the changing world beyond China. A closer reading of the kesi will reveal that its image and inscription integrates the zhigong tu genre (the official documentation of China’s foreign relations) and li (the guiding principle of China’s foreign relations). I will argue that the emperor employed the zhigong tu genre and li to assert the power of the Qing Empire and divert his criticism of British imperialism. Pictorially the kesi follows the power structuring process of li by emphasizing the contingent relationship between the supreme lord (the Qianlong Emperor) and the lesser lord (George Macartney). The kesi’s inscription, composed by the Emperor himself, embodies the core of China’s tributary practice: “In my kindness to men from afar I make generous return.” Thus far, the kesi channels the conventions of zhigong tu and manifests the principles of li. During the Qing Dynasty, the Qianlong Emperor’s materialization of his power through the appropriation of zhigong tu and li was necessary to foster domestic confidence. The kesi, marking the end of China’s tributary practice, can be alternatively understood as the Emperor’s last capacity to maintain internal stability through the Chinese tributary system.--Abstract.

Local access dig.pdf. [Zhang Macartney.pdf]

Kang Yong Qian san di yu Xixue-Dongjian 康 雍乾三帝與西學東漸 / Wu Boya zhu 吳伯婭.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 496-505).