Five major publishing systems were gradually established after the appearance of printing technique. They were official publications from government publishing houses； bookshop publications from private publishing houses； personal publications； academy publications from academy publishing houses and temple and monastery publications. The boom of the publishing industry promoted book circulation and trade. In the 2nd century B.C.， Shu Si (书肆)—the early book marketplace， came to existence in Chang’an and other economically and culturally developed cities. Book businesses gradually flourished during the Tang and Song dynasties (618–1279) and various business methods including advertising were used. During the Southern Song Dynasty (127–1279)， the idea and practice of copyright entered the Chinese book industry. The earliest copyright mark was in the brand mark of the book The Kai Feng Story (《东都 事略》 ) (published in 1190–1194)， on which 15 characters were written， reading “first published by Cheng from Mt. MeiShan， registered already， no unauthorized copy is allowed.”
The significant achievement of ancient Chinese publishing is that publications are large in number and rich in connotation， with various forms and far-reaching influence. Hence， it has become one of the remarkable symbols of Chinese civilization.
China has a fine tradition of “valuing knowledge and honoring writing.” Since ancient times， Chinese intellectuals have devoted themselves to writing to express faith， attain pride and earn fame. Statistics show that there are some 2.3 million volumes of 180，000 kinds from the Western Han Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty (202 B.C.–1911 A.D.). Ancient Chinese books have various categories. Under Confucian classics， history， philosophy， literature， Buddhism and Taoism scriptures， there are diverse types of literature. Giant works with many volumes symbolize the grandness of ancient Chinese literature and the prosperity of the publishing industry. For instance， great works like the Yongle Encyclopedia of the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644 with 370 million words)， The Compendium of Works of Past and Present of the Qing Dynasty (1616–1911)， the Imperial Collection of Four (nearly 1 billion words) were the classics. Chinese books， particular about beauty in form， have bamboo and wooden slips， scrolls and album book systems with various bookbinding forms consisting of folding forms， whirlwind binding， dragon-scale binding， butterfly-like binding， wrapped-ridge binding and traditional thread binding. In addition， Chinese books have elegant regard for paper and ink， style， and format.
Cherishing books and old scriptures is one of fine traditions in Chinese culture. But owing to both human and natural factors， all the ancient Chinese books have experienced a tough time， and suffered heavy losses in the historic process， which have stirred even greater efforts in collecting and protecting books.
As an important part of Chinese publishing， collections in China started early and developed deeply. Collecting systems evolved among feudal officials， private persons， Buddhist and Taoist temples and academies of classical learning. In ancient China， there were millions of private libraries and bibliophiles contributed brilliantly to book maintenance， repairing and protection. As a result， a distinct book-keeping culture has developed.
Ancient Chinese have accumulated rich experience in writing， publishing， maintaining and reading books. Through research on books， “a study of publishing” has formed which is focusing on making printing blocks； distinguishing authentic writings from imitations； collecting； emendating； table of contents； and so on. The numerous researches on these fields have increased the academic value of ancient publishing.
China， historically， has stressed communication with other countries. Publication exchanges are an important means of communication. “The Book Road” was been built across Asia and Europe during long periods of cross-country communication.
As a result， China spread its advanced publishing technique together with its science and culture， and also learned a lot from other countries and areas， which has promoted the progress of Chinese civilization. China and the rest of the world influenced each other and achieved harmonious development.
Although ancient Chinese publishing took the leading position in the world for a long time and exerted widespread influence especially in the publishing industries of countries in the Confucianism Civilization circle， the influence of Chinese publishing decreased in modern times， even below the advanced world level for a while.
From the 19th century onwards， with western learning spreading to the east， the Chinese publishing industry realized a successful transition through learning from and drawing lessons from western-developed publishing.
Founded in 1897 and 1912 respectively， the Commercial Press and Zhonghua Book Company have become the new publishing companies keeping abreast of the times by actively improving technology and adopting the operation and management style of capitalism. In the first half of 20th century， the Chinese publishing industry achieved a revolution from traditional to modernized and merged into the development trend of world publishing industry with brand-new outlook. From then on， modern publishing has become the main form of Chinese publishing and it has entered into a splendid development period.
After the founding of People’s Republic of China in 1949， modern publishing has achieved greater accomplishments. With 60 years of development， China has become a power in the global publishing industry.
Book Disaster
