THOMS, Peter Perring.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

A Dissertation on the Ancient Chinese Vases of the Shang Dynasty, from 1743 to 1496, B.C. First edition, presentation copy, with a tipped-in autograph letter signed from the author to the Religious Tract Society, in which he expresses his pleasure "of sending you a copy of my work on the Vases of the Shang Dynasty." With this copy, Thoms also sent the society a printed translation of a recently acquired Chinese document, and this rare broadside is tipped onto the front pastedown.Peter Perring Thoms (1791-1855) arrived in China in 1814, bringing with him moveable type and other equipment sent at the expense of the East India Company and needed to print Robert Morrison's Dictionary of the Chinese Language. Over the coming years, he undertook research on Chinese vessels but was required to return to Britain on the completion of the dictionary printing project. "Thoms based his pioneering dissertation on the catalogue of the Song imperial collection of bronzes, the Bogu tulu, a 16-volume work on the arts of the Shang, Zhou and Han dynasties. Nowhere in his text does Thoms mention that the 'vases' were made of bronze. In fact, he was under the mistaken impression that the mirrors were made of polished steel, and most of the vases of gold" (Löwendahl).His letter is also a pitch for future custom for his printing business. "Allow me to add, that I was the intimate friend of Dr Milne while in China, and the constant companion of the Revd Dr Morrison for nearly 12 years, to say nothin

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