Yingya Shenglan

Ma Huan (馬歡) wrote the book Yingya Shenglan. He served as an interpreter on the fourth, sixth, and seventh Ming treasure voyages. Guo Chongli (郭崇礼), who participated in three of the voyages, was Ma Huan collaborator on the book. The two gentlemen recorded their observations about the different countries visited during the voyages, which were used to compose the book. In 1451, the imperial clerk Gu Po wrote an afterword for the book. Guo Chongli, with the help of his friend Lu Tingyong, successfully sought out Gu Po to write the afterword. The book was published in 1451. ==Versions==

There is no known extant version of the original Yingya Shenglan, published in 1451. However, later copies of Ma Huan's work have been preserved, even though these copies contain differences due to later editors. and the National Palace Museum in Taipei. Manuscript copies of the version can be found at the British Museum in London and the Sinological Institute in Leiden. Zhang Sheng's (張昇) so-called "rifacimento" of the Yingya Shenglan appears in a posthumous edition of Zhang Sheng's works, published by his son in 1522. The version was also published in chapter 63 of the Jilu Huibian (circa 1617), comprising 22 folios, and included in various other works. Zhang Sheng condensed and rewrote the Yingya Shenglan into a literary style of composition, while Ma Huan had originally written it in a colloquial style. The work Shengchao Yishi (勝朝遺事), published by Wu Miguang (吳彌光) in 1824, contains a version of the Yingya Shenglan. The version comprises 48 folios in chapter 1 of the work. The Institut des Hautes Études Chinoises in Paris houses an example of the work. The version was based on a manuscript, of which nothing is known. == See also ==