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The Diamond Sutra, the earliest dated printed book

11 May 868 CE·Science, technology & invention·China·
11 May 868 CEDate
Science, technology & inventionCategory
21Empires active
Date
11 May 868 CE
Category
Science, technology & invention
Region
China
Era
Post-Classical / Medieval
Significance

Dated to 11 May 868 by its own colophon, the Chinese Diamond Sutra is the earliest complete, dated printed book known to survive, produced by woodblock printing during the late Tang dynasty.

The five-metre scroll, made of sheets of printed paper pasted together, bears an inscription recording that it was 'reverently made for universal free distribution by Wang Jie on behalf of his parents.' It was recovered in 1907 from the sealed Library Cave at the Mogao Caves near Dunhuang in northwest China, among tens of thousands of manuscripts, and is now held by the British Library. The book demonstrates that woodblock printing in China was already a mature, sophisticated technology centuries before printing reached Europe, used initially to multiply Buddhist scriptures and calendars for a mass audience. The proliferation of cheap printed texts would help spread literacy, standardise knowledge and support the examination culture and book trade that flourished under the Song dynasty.

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