State and Crafts in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)

Cover -- Table of Contents -- Conventions for the notation of time, weights, and measures -- Acknowledgements -- Introduction -- 1. State Engagement in the Handicraft Sector -- 2. The Qing Central Government Institutions in Control of the Handicrafts -- 3. The Rise, Decline, and Reinforcement of the Crafts in the Service of the State -- 4. Government Shipbuilding -- 5. Private Shipbuilding, Private and Government Cooperation , and Procurement Prices -- 6. The Shipbuilding Workforce Employed by the State and Private Workshops and Enterprises -- 7. Printing in the Service of the State -- 8. Private Printing, Private and Government Cooperation , and the Printing Workforce -- 9. The Artisan's Place: The 'Four Occupational Groups' and the Social Position of Craftspeople -- 10. Merchant and Craft Guilds -- Conclusion -- References -- Index -- List of Tables and Illustrations -- Map 1 The territory of the Qing dynasty, ca. 1820: Provinces -- Figure 1 Grain transport ship, Caofang chuan 漕 -- Figure 2 Sand ship, Shachuan 沙 -- Figure 3 Big Fujian ship, Da Fuchuan -- Figure 4 Guangdong ship, Guangdong chuan -- Figure 5 Waterways in the Qing dynasty -- Figure 6 Centres of shipbuilding in the Qing dynasty -- Figure 7 Construction of wooden sailing ships in the 1970s, Hong Kong -- Figure 8 Compartments within the hull construction -- Figure 9 The caulking procedure -- Figure 10 Number of sailing ships entered and cleared in Shanghai, 1902-1941 -- Figure 11 Number of steamships in Chinese possession, 1882-1921 -- Figure 12 Tonnage of steamships in Chinese possession, 1882-1921 -- Figure 13 Numbers of steamships and sailing ships on the Yangzi in Sichuan, 1891-1932 -- Figure 17 Position of the Wuying dian Printery within the Imperial Palace in Peking -- Figure 18 Entrance of the Main Hall of Wuying dian -- Figure 19 Entrance to the Wuying dian compound.

This book, full of quantitative evidence and limited-circulation archives, details manufacturing and the beginnings of industrialisation in China from 1644 to 1911. It thoroughly examines the interior organisation of public craft production and the complementary activities of the private sector. It offers detailed knowledge of shipbuilding and printing. Moreover, it contributes to the research of labour history and the rise of capitalism in China through its examination of living conditions, working conditions, and wages