Keeping Record : The Materiality of Rulership and Administration in Early China and Medieval Europe

Abstract

The production and retention of written records was an important facet of pre-modern rulership and administration. While such documents’ contents have been well studied, much can still be learnt by examining these records as artefacts. This volume is devoted to the material features of a range of records from early China and medieval Europe, which shed new light on the functioning of government and the declarations of power contained within them.