| Abstract |
Based on the existing materials, there are the texts and figures of “The Classic of Mountains and Seas” in Korea and Japan, while there are also the figures of “The Classic of Mountains and Seas” adapted and reproduced for commoners according to local conditions. As a matter of fact, the influence of “The Classic of Mountains and Seas” has gone beyond the East Asian cultural sphere, reaching those countries in Southeast Asia. Roughly in the 1590s, there was such a manuscript of unknown author. Scholars called this invaluable manuscript the “Manila Manuscript”, and then renamed it the “Boxer Codex.” C. R. Boxer was the person who rediscovered this manuscript in the first half of the 20th century. The contents of the “Boxer Codex” include the description of the Philippines, Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia and the Ming dynasty through texts and colorful paintings. Among them, there are approximately 60 figures on the Ming dynasty, which are similar to the contents of “Zhu Yi Men” (“Categories of Various Barbarians”), a daily Leishu published by Jianyang in late Ming dynasty, mostly birds, beasts, insects and fish from “The Classic of Mountains and Seas.” This paper focuses on the discussion of the figures of “The Classic of Mountains and Seas” collected by the “Boxer Codex,” examining the sources of production of the manuscript “Sun Hai Jing Tu.” At the same time, through comparison, this paper also points out how the “Zhu Yi Men” was misused and misinterpreted. |
