T’an T’ien 談天 [Outlines of Astronomy] First edition

From an Ox-Driven Printing Press to the Stars — T’an T’ien

Six plates and numerous in-text illustrations. 18 juan in 3 volumes. 4to (31 × 21 cm). Vol 1 and 3 new stitching, vol2 original stitch (some loose). Movable metal type. 墨海書館 (The London Missionary Society Press). 咸豐己未年, 1859.

Published in 1859, complete with a preface in English by A. Wylie and a Chinese–English vocabulary of technical terms, T’an T’ien was translated into Chinese by the eminent mathematician Li Shanlan (1811–1882) in collaboration with the British missionary Alexander Wylie (1815–1887). This monumental work stands as the first and most important systematic introduction to Western astronomy in modern Chinese history.

Adapted from Sir John Frederick William Herschel’s Outlines of Astronomy, the translation comprises eighteen volumes covering a vast range of astronomical knowledge—from the structure of the solar system and celestial mechanics to the study of stars and nebulae. It was through this book that the law of universal gravitation and the heliocentric theory were first introduced systematically to Chinese readers.

The eighteen volumes of T’an T’ien cover a comprehensive range of astronomical topics:

• Vols. 1–2, “On the Earth” and “On Nomenclature,” discuss the physical nature of the Earth and introduce newly coined technical terms such as “latitude,” “longitude,” “poles,” and “equator.”
• Vol. 3, “Principles of Measurement,” explains the use of astronomical instruments including the telescope and the transit circle.
• Vol. 4, “Geography,” describes methods for determining the size of the Earth, and introduces concepts such as centrifugal and gravitational force, as well as the Earth’s rotation.
• Vol. 5, “Celestial Charts,” introduces methods of determining right ascension and declination.
• Vols. 6–7 describe the Sun and the Moon, including sunspots, orbital paths, and distances.
• Vol. 8, “On Motion,” presents Newtonian mechanics in accessible form.
• Vol. 9, “The Planets,” outlines the structure and orbits of the eight known planets.
• Vol. 10, “The Moons,” expands the concept of “moon” to include planetary satellites.
• Vol. 11, “Comets,” interprets cometary motion through gravitational theory, demonstrating that cometary paths follow conic sections and can be predicted—dispelling millennia-old superstitions about “broom stars.”
• Vols. 12–14 apply mechanics to explain the orbits of planets, satellites, and comets.
• Vols. 15–17 summarize the work of Sir John Herschel and his father William Herschel on stellar magnitudes, parallax, binary stars, variable stars, and nebulae.
• Vol. 18 concludes with a discussion of calendars and scientific methodology, affirming that “truth must be sought through the investigation of things,” a phrase that captures the essence of the scientific spirit—rational, empirical, and truth-seeking.

While based on Herschel’s Outlines of Astronomy, T’an T’ien was far more than a literal translation. At a time when few in China had any exposure to Western science, Li and Wylie took great effort to render complex astronomical concepts intelligible in classical Chinese. They coined numerous neologisms—many of which later became standard scientific terms in Chinese—making the book a foundational work for the development of modern Chinese scientific vocabulary and thought.

The influence of T’an T’ien on late Qing intellectual circles was profound. Reformist thinkers such as Kang Youwei (康有為) and Liang Qichao (梁啟超) both praised the work highly. Kang listed it among the foremost Western studies in his Gui Xue Da Wen and based his own Zhu Tian Jiang on its heliocentric and Newtonian principles. Liang, meanwhile, called it “a work of great breadth and depth—its elegance of translation is rarely seen among all books.”

Tan T’ien was also one of the earliest scientific books in China to be printed with movable metal type. The London Missionary Society Press 墨海書館, established by missionary Walter Medhurst in Shanghai in 1843, was the first modern printing institution in China. Its Western-style Chinese movable-type press—reportedly powered by oxen rather than steam—was a technological marvel of its time. Wang Tao (1828–1897), a prominent late-Qing scholar, upon first seeing the press, recorded with fascination: “車床以牛曳之，刷書用牛車。范銅為輪，大小八九事。書板置車箱平處，而出入以機推動之……皮條從牆隙拽出，安車處不見牛也。西人舉動，務為巧妙如此。” Literati of the period also responded to the innovation with poetic admiration, as seen in a “竹枝词” of the time: “車翻墨海轉輪圓，百種奇編宇內傳。忙煞老牛渾未解，不耕禾隴耕書田。” While most of the Press’s early output consisted of Bibles and missionary tracts, T’an T’ien marked a historic moment as one of the first Western scientific works printed in China using movable type, bridging the worlds of traditional scholarship and modern science.

Slight water staining and minor worming.

Please note: A 10% consumption tax will be added for orders shipped within Japan.