Research On Cultivated Illustrations Of Woodcut Engraving In Wanli Of Ming Dynasty

The ancient Chinese engravings reached its heyday in Ming Dynasty, of which the Wanli Era was during the critical periods of development. Major successes have been achieved in the woodcut print at that time, not only in quantity but also in quality. Many works were of high artistic and aesthetic values.The first chapter investigates the social background of woodcut prints in Wanli Era of Ming Dynasty. From the beginning of Zhu Yuanzhang’s establishment of Ming Dynasty, the policy of Ming government was beneficial for the development of engraving industry. In addition, the street culture boosted the circulation and extended the range of books in that period. During that time, the opera and novel prints had the largest number. Compared with those in the time before or after Ming Dynasty, the quantity and quality of cultivated engravings were worth attention.The second chapter discusses the content of cultivated woodcut prints in Wanli Era of Ming Dynasty, covering "the three cardinal guides and the five constant virtues"; Confucianism; primers; and history. The illustration of the books were mostly for woman and children.The third chapter studies the artistic style of illustrations of woodcut engravings in Wanli Era of Ming Dynasty. It emphasizes on forms of illustrations of books and technology characteristics of woodcut engravings at that time. Besides, the paper gives a definition of illustrations and clarifies their roles in books. What’s more, it categorizes the illustrations of woodcut engravings into six types.By exploring the content and artistic style of cultivated woodcut illustrations of Wanli Era in Ming Dynasty, the author analyzes the value and significance to enrich the research content and provide more abundant and systematic research data.