What is the material?
Received edition, excavated manuscript, object, oral account, paper and modern manual support different claims.
LResearch library · source navigator
Sources and bibliography
Primary-text leads, subject literature, historical material and public research resources. Each source retains its related dossier and context for search, comparison and citation.
34dossiers58external research entries48core terms
01Four research routes
Find sources by research question
One name may belong at once to method, history, text and social practice. These four routes interconnect, but answer different questions.
01 · Identify a system
Atlas
Check names, aliases, pinyin, family, principles, formation, texts and debates.
Enter 34 dossiers02 · Trace a chronologyHistory of Chinese mantic arts
Use bones, manuscripts, institutions, print and modern scholarship to distinguish types of evidence.
Open the timeline03 · Clarify a conceptBilingual glossary
Search cross-system terms such as image, number, yin-yang, Five Phases, stems-branches, Nine Palaces and Najia.
Search the glossary04 · Conduct researchMethods and project frameworks
Move from source layers and textual criticism to algorithm reconstruction and empirical inquiry.
View research methods02Layered reading
Three depths of reading
The library separates public orientation, specialist study and independent research. You may move quickly, but should not skip checks of terminology, period and source type.
- 01
Public orientation
Read atlas summaries, the historical overview and glossary definitions to establish names, periods and families.
For first encounters with Chinese mantic arts - 02
Specialist study
Enter a dossier's principles, texts, evidence limits and related systems; record differences among editions and lineages.
For learners with a defined field - 03
Independent research
Return to primary texts, catalogues, archaeology and institutional databases; publish citations, procedures and uncertainties.
For papers, translation, reconstruction and digital projects
03Evaluating sources
Six dimensions of source evaluation
An institutional page may offer only an introduction; a lineage manuscript may preserve a valuable lead. Evaluation asks exactly what a source can establish, regardless of institutional or lineage status.
How is it dated?
Separate the date claimed in a text, the surviving edition, attribution and the date of modern cataloguing.
Can the passage be located?
Record chapter, fascicle, page, edition, collection number or a stable link whenever possible.
Tradition or research conclusion?
Layer lineage interpretation, cultural narrative, historical claim and modern validation.
Can the procedure be reproduced?
Charts and calculations require inputs, rules, calendar conventions and intermediate steps.
Are the limits explicit?
Cases do not generalize automatically; mantic content does not replace medical, legal or financial advice.
04Source catalogue
Public source catalogue
These links are the sources already annotated in dossiers and the history: museums, universities, research institutes, academic publishers and digital text projects. External content and availability remain under the responsible institution.
Current context · Dunhuang's everyday cosmos: Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties
Stein manuscript Dunhuang Star Chart
An item-level record for the Dunhuang Star Chart, with shelfmark, institution, dimensions and provenance.
- Responsibility
- IDP catalogue record; manuscript authorship not established here
- Identifier / locator
- Or.8210/S.3326
- Holding institution
- British Library
- Year and version
- Online catalogue; proposed manuscript date is not a publication year
Related reading国家星占与天象占候Dunhuang's everyday cosmos: Sui, Tang and Five DynastiesDunhuang Star Chart: building an evidence file
Reading and citation notes
- Locating the evidence
- Consult Date, Description and Institution in Overview, and Stein site number Ch.85.XIII in Historical information.
- Scope and limitations
- Date gives 649–684; Description instead suggests the early eighth century. Cite the field used and retain the discrepancy. A shelfmark does not identify an author. Consult the original image-rights notice.
Note reviewed
The Dunhuang Chinese Sky: A Comprehensive Study of the Oldest Known Star Atlas
Studies the atlas, projections, accompanying texts and dating, with numbered sections, tables and appendices.
- Responsibility
- Jean-Marc Bonnet-Bidaud, Françoise Praderie and Susan Whitfield, authors
- Year and version
- 2009 · Paper download hosted by IDP; journal volume and pagination not verified in this review
Related reading国家星占与天象占候Dunhuang's everyday cosmos: Sui, Tang and Five DynastiesDunhuang Star Chart: building an evidence file
Reading and citation notes
- Locating the evidence
- PDF page 1 lists authors and abstract; section 3.2 covers astronomical content, and 5.1 dating (PDF pages 8–9). These file positions are not journal pagination.
- Scope and limitations
- The abstract counts 1,339 stars; the IDP guide gives 1,345. Preserve each count without assuming a typographical error. Authorship and dating are argued conclusions with qualifications.
Note reviewed
The Dunhuang Star Chart (Or.8210/S.3326)
An English translation of cloud-divination and celestial-station passages, organised as Sections 1 and 2, with gaps and some editorial corrections.
- Responsibility
- Imre Galambos, translator; attribution confirmed by the IDP project account
- Identifier / locator
- Or.8210/S.3326 · Section 1 / Section 2
- Year and version
- 2009 · IDP online translation; not a graph-by-graph edition of the scroll
Related reading分野占Dunhuang's everyday cosmos: Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties风角、云气与物候杂占Dunhuang Star Chart: building an evidence file
Reading and citation notes
- Locating the evidence
- Use Section 1 for cloud entries and Section 2 for station passages. Translator attribution is checked against IDP's Astronomy in China's Past project account.
- Scope and limitations
- This is a modern translation. Distinguish supplementation and correction from transmitted wording; verify graphs, lines and punctuation against images and editions.
Note reviewed
Astronomy in China's Past
Documents the IDP astronomy project and identifies the three study authors and the manuscript translator.
- Responsibility
- Josh Anderson, author of the project account
Reading and citation notes
- Locating the evidence
- Scholarly Research names the study authors and Imre Galambos's translation; the page credits Josh Anderson.
- Scope and limitations
- Use for modern contributor attribution and project context, not in place of manuscript images or dating arguments.
Note reviewed
The Dunhuang Star Atlas
Introduces the arrangement of cloud material and star charts in the scroll, providing an overview and questions for closer study.
- Responsibility
- International Dunhuang Programme learning resource; no individual author listed
Related reading风角、云气与物候杂占Dunhuang's everyday cosmos: Sui, Tang and Five DynastiesDunhuang Star Chart: building an evidence file
Reading and citation notes
- Locating the evidence
- Consult A closer look, Cloud divination, and What else can the Dunhuang Star Atlas tell us?
- Scope and limitations
- Public-facing dates and counts can differ from specialist studies. Follow the research literature for arguments about precision, authorship and use.
Note reviewed
International Dunhuang Programme: digital collections
The International Dunhuang Programme brings together online collections from the Eastern Silk Roads, with collection search, learning resources and thematic content.
Related readingDunhuang manuscripts and digital humanities
Reading and citation notes
- Locating the evidence
- At item level, record the shelfmark, holding institution, image side or sequence and original item link.
- Scope and limitations
- The portal alone cannot establish an individual manuscript's date or reading. Check item-specific rights before reusing images.
Note reviewed
RIS export retains filtered results and verified bibliographic fields. Translators and holding institutions remain notes; manuscript dating is not a publication year. Unverified fields stay blank.
05Citation record
Elements of a citation record
When pages, editions or interpretations change, a clear record lets you and later readers retrace the same evidentiary path.
- 01Author or responsible institution
- 02Title and document type
- 03Edition, fascicle or collection number
- 04Stable URL and access date
- 05Page number for the cited passage
- 06Your inference separated from the source