Pictures and music from stone: the indigenization of lithography in modern China, 1876–1945

Abstract

ABSTRACT Lithography, which originated in Germany, was introduced into China by European missionaries in the nineteenth century. Inexpensive and uncomplicated, it quickly became an important medium for disseminating knowledge throughout a century of social change in modern China. The indigenization of this foreign technology in China was constantly shaped by and in turn shaped a variety of factors such as equipment, materials, human agency, and the market. This new method of printing enabled Chinese publishers to disseminate information and knowledge vividly and introduced Chinese elements into the printing of images and musical notation.