These items represent the 12 volumes of the late Ming dynasty woodblock prints of the sutra entitled, The Sutra of Buddha’s name. Also referred to as fuo shuo fuo ming jing (佛说佛名经),the 12-volume publication has more than 100 illustrations. It was produced as liturgical literature for the Buddhists, especially the monks.These publications were products of two very distinctive times of China’s history of book-printing. The late Ming is generally recognised to be the beginning of China’s peak, with many painters and dedicated publishers working hand-in-hand to produce books for a large population hungry for reading material.Qianlong of the Qing dynasty (1736-1795) commands the best of Chinese arts and crafts inherited from the late Ming. With enthusiastic imperial patronage, this was the last time Chinese art was to flourish before the collapse of the imperial system.
