the beijing center for chinese studies

THE ANTON LIBRARY

The TBC library provides a quiet refuge for reflection and study

THE ANTON LIBRARY

LIBRARY HOURS

Monday, 9:00am-5:00pm

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 8:00am-5:00pm

Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm

Closed on Saturday and Sunday

* The library is open to all TBC students. If you are not a TBC student, please fill out this form if you are interested in Anton Library membership.

Email: library@thebeijingcenter.org

Telephone: +86 10 8415 0289

ABOUT THE ANTON LIBRARY

The Beijing Center’s library began in 1998 with just 70 books. Now housed in a beautiful new space decorated in traditional Chinese style, it has grown to over 27,000 volumes in open stacks.

The main collection of books about China written in English is the largest private such collection in Beijing and one of the largest in China. Nearly 1,000 volumes are added annually, selected among books published in North America, Europe and China. The main subject headings are Art & Architecture, Biographies, Business & Economics, Culture & Society, Ethnology, Film & Theater, History, Language, Literature, Media & Journalism, Philosophy & Religion, Photography, Political sciences, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Travel, Women’s Studies, Wushu, and Martial Arts.

The library also hosts a special history collection open to scholars on the history of Christianity in China in the late Ming and Qing dynasties. This collection concentrates on primary sources and includes books in Chinese, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Latin, and other European languages.

HOW THE WEST LEARNED OF CHINA COLLECTION

Long before TBC began its mission to educate the West about China, western countries first learned about China from early writings of Jesuit missionaries, merchants, and diplomats.The TBC Library of Chinese Studies has obtained several original copies of these works in the collection: “How the West Learned of China”. This collection dates from 1588 to 1840 (with a few later exceptions).

HISTORICAL COLLECTION

The Historical Collection contains over 3,000 books from the early 19th century to the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Many books were published in the Qing Dynasty and some are considered rare or collectors items.

HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY

This is a multilingual collection mainly of primary sources from around the world on early Christian history in China. Works here are in Chinese, Latin, Portuguese, Dutch, German, Spanish, French, etc. (not English). It contains the work of early Dominicans, Franciscans, Jesuits and others as well as works from the early local church in China.

Works on the history of the Christian Church in China written in English can be found in the historical collection (1820 to 1949) or in the main collection (1949 to date). The very earliest works by the Jesuit missionaries (Ricci, Trigault, Schall von Bell, Kircher, Martini, Amiot, etc.) are in the collection on “How the West Learned of China”.

As part of TBC’s Academic and Research Division, The Beijing Center Press is a publishing house dedicated to publishing distinctive works with an investigative, creative, or instructional nature, that contribute to a variety of China-related topics, including arts, history, culture, philosophy, business, literature, society, policy and politics, religion, environment, sciences, current affairs, etc.

TBC has graciously allowed me access to its wonderful library of English books on China, many of which are rare, out of print and hard to find otherwise. Having this access made it much easier for me to research my last books, and I continue to use the library...

Michael Schuman

American Journalist - 2015-2020

TBC just happens to be a kind of confluence of very useful things. It's not just that that there are fantastic resources here, dealing with early books and other books, it's also that there are uniquely knowledgeable faculty, students, and other people...

Dr. Jonathan Lux

Saint Louis University - SUMMER 2016

The Anton Library contains a large collection of Jesuit-related books, many of which are very helpful to my research on 18th-century China Jesuits...

Qingfan Jiang

Columbia University

the beijing center for chinese studies

THE ANTON LIBRARY