2011 Reprint of 1930 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. Illustrated with 22 plans, views, portraits etc. The plan of this book is to gather into one volume the available evidence of the existence of Christians in China in the early and middle ages of the Christian era, and to give in English translation the actual words of the original authorities in every case, avoiding as far as possible all generalizations, summaries or expressions of personal opinion by the editor. References and explanations have been provided in the footnotes. Chapters on the Tang Dynasty, The Zaitun Crosses, Rabban Sauma, the Mission of the Franciscan Brothers and more. Scarce in the original.

Who were the main actors in propagating Christianity in China? Where did Christian communities settle? What discussions were held in China, concerning Christianity? These, and many other, questions are answered in this reference work, which is divided in a systematic part and analytical articles. This handbook represents a true reference guide to the reception of Christianity in pre-1800 China. It presents to the reader, in comprehensive fashion, all current knowledge of Christianity in China, and guides him through the main Chinese and Western sources, bibliographies and archives. The scope of the volume is broad and covers a wide range of topics, such as theology, philosophy, astronomy, mathematics, medicine, cannon, botany, art, music, and more.