Weina Zhang, Qian Tian

Weina Zhang

15 Dec. 2022

The Bamboo Annals, The annals method of the reign of the kings, The cumulative method of writing the years.

As the one of the earliest chronicles found and not destroyed by Qin dynasty in China, the Bamboo Annals was annotated and compiled into books in the Western Jin dynasty, but it was still inevitably lost at Song dynasty. After the Ming and Qing dynasties, scholars gradually realized its role as an indispensable historical source for the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. It gradually formed two systems of ancient and modern editions. By studying the chronological elements in the ancient version of the Bamboo Annals and the writing style of the "cumulative years", the author classifies the way of dating in the Bamboo Annals, and puts forward the view that the chronological method in the Bamboo Annals is helpful to judge the authenticity of the Bamboo Annals.

© 2022, the Authors. Published by ISCCAC

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