and the revolutionary pedigree on which he based his legitimacy. By its very scope, the book asserts the Kuomintang’s sovereignty over the mainland even though, for the non-Taiwan portions, the editors could only rely on images taken before the 1949 evacuation. Captions refer to the future “recovery of the mainland” (p. 121), Shanghai’s population are described as “anxiously awaiting our liberation” (p. 29), and Beijing under Mao is described as having “lived in disgrace” (p. 151). These assertions of sovereignty and the Kuomintang’s strident anti- communism also justified Taiwan’s ongoing presence in the United Nations and other international bodies as the de jure government of China. As a military-sponsored publication, Women de Zhonghua was first released only for use within the army and so is unpriced. A commercial edition followed a couple of months later in November 1965. All editions are now uncommon institutionally, with copies of the first held predominantly in libraries in the United States and Taiwan. Folio. Original brown cloth-backed green marble-patterned boards, spine and front board gilt-lettered, photographic illustration of Chinese archaeological relics to front board, orange pictorial endpapers. Illustrations and maps throughout. Foot of spine and upper tips bumped, rear inner hinge beginning to split, book block holding firm, small colour losses and skinning to rear endpaper and several pages at margins, largely unobtrusive. A very good copy. £3,000 [151399] The Animation Film of the People’s Republic of China. Peking: China Film Distribution Corporation, [c.1956] 32 CHINESE ANIMATION FILMS. An attractive booklet, unrecorded institutionally, distributed by China’s state film distributor to showcase cinematic advances and politically motivated cultural production in the early years of Mao’s China. Two of the featured films were recognised with international awards, epitomizing the 1950s golden age of Chinese animated cinema. This work, containing English and French text to reach a wide foreign audience, discusses three technically sophisticated pictures with themes and messages aligned to the ideological outlook of the new communist government.
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31 CHIANG, Ching-kuo – “OUR CHINA” EDITORIAL COMMITTEE. Women de Zhonghua (“Our China”). Taipei: Guofang bu zong zhengzhi zuozhan bu (Ministry of Defence General Political Warfare Department), September 1965 SIGNED BY THE FUTURE PRESIDENT OF TAIWAN First edition, second printing, of this lavishly illustrated bilingual propaganda photobook signed by Chiang Ching-kuo three months after he survived an assassination attempt. As the son of Chiang Kai-shek, Chiang Ching- kuo (1910–1988) was one of the leading figures in Taiwanese politics after 1949, eventually being elected president in 1978. His tenure as minister of national defence between 1965 and 1969 coincided with the publication of this photobook, with Chiang likely required to approve proofs. In 1969 he was promoted to the position of vice-premier. On an official visit to the United States in April 1970 he was targeted in an assassination attempt outside the Plaza Hotel in New York. An inscription below his signature notes that he signed this copy on 24 July 1970. The photobook is a visual journey through China province by province, with introductory remarks accompanied by dozens of images of scenic spots and sites and buildings of historical significance. Portraits of Sun Yat-sen and Chiang Kai-shek frame the work – a reminder of Taiwan’s supreme leader
The first, “The Chinese Puppet Show” (1956), introduces four puppet show performances, each filmed in colour, of traditional Chinese stories and dances displaying folk customs, acts of heroism, and military cunning. The second, “Why the Crow is Black” (1955), preaches the value of hard work and the dangers of vanity. Finally, “The Magic Paintbrush” (1955) tells of a man able to paint objects that then come to life, stressing how he used this power for the good of ordinary people and against the overarching power of officialdom. The films included in the present publication were made in a period when animation emerged as an integral part of China’s cinematic output. China’s first full-length animated film was produced in 1941 by the renowned Wan Brothers studio, but production reached maturity during the 1950s, with the Wans and other prominent animators working out of the Shanghai Film Studio. There, they produced many classics of the genre, with both “The Magic Paintbrush” and “Why the Crow is Black” winning awards at the 8th Venice International Children’s Film Festival in 1956. Large quarto, 10 pp. Original stapled pictorial wrappers. Colour illustrations throughout. A few creases, small area of adhesive skinning to pp. 9–10 affecting contents. A very good copy of this vulnerable publication. £500 [151829]
All items are fully described and photographed at peterharrington.co.uk
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