About the author

Cao Zhao's biographical details are limited: his courtesy name, native place, and dates of birth and death are not clearly recorded, and the available public information is too sparse to reconstruct a full life. What can be confirmed is that he wrote two works, Gegu Yaolun and the four-volume Yihu Tiandi. Gegu Yaolun is an important ancient Chinese work on the connoisseurship of antiquities, discussing categories of bronze vessels, ceramics, painting and calligraphy, and rubbings, and setting out criteria for form, authenticity, and evaluation. Its style is concise and practical, reflecting careful observation and connoisseurial experience. Such content is often classed as history and philosophy reading: the former because of its value for the study of antiquities, the latter because of the discernment and judgment implicit in its taste. Cao Zhao's writing favors order and judgment over ornate language, offering a useful reference text for later understanding of the connoisseurship and collecting of ancient objects.

Written (2)

Publishers

Zhonghua Book Company