On Developing the Ancient Books Preservation and Conservation Subject Discipline:Background,Current Status and Future Possibilities
ZHANG Jing,LIU Han
Abstract Ancient books are carriers of traditional Chinese culture,so it is important for their preservation and dissemination.This gives rise to the opportunity to develop an academic subject discipline of ancient books preservation and conservation.The authors review and assess the current progress in related work by different research groups.Challenges include the lack of discussion on the premises of this new subject,deficiency of understanding of its knowledge structure,few concerted efforts with social and academic communities,lack of empirical studies and insufficient attention to international discourse.The authors consider that it is necessary to act within the framework of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics for improvement.When designing a new academic subject,the theory and practice of setting up academic disciplines should be duly observed.Empirical research for educational reformation is also needed for building a theoretical system of ancient books preservation and conservation scientifically.
Keywords ancient books preservation and conservation;academic subject development;theoretical system of ancient books preservation and conservation