A Collection of Ming Dynasty Top Scholars' Examination Essays

A Compilation of Palace Examination Essays by Ming Dynasty Zhuangyuan is the most complete collection of Ming dynasty palace examination essays ever assembled. It brings together the essays of 89 zhuangyuan from 88 examination years, missing only the examination held in the sixteenth year of the Chongzhen reign, and runs to about 400,000 characters. The editors selected the best base texts and compared them against as many other editions as possible, carefully collating them to provide reliable primary sources for research in related fields. The book includes the essays of Wu Bozong, who placed first in the 1371 examination; Ding Xian, who placed first in 1385; Ren Hengtai, who placed first in 1388; and Huang Guan, also known as Xu Guan, who placed first in 1391, among others.