Category Archives: archaeology

Grid lines in medieval Chinese scrolls: Functionality or design?

Posted on 02/09/2012 by imre

Medieval manuscript scrolls are often ruled with grid lines to guide the hand of the calligrapher. These lines are a basic feature of most standard Buddhist and Taoist scrolls, which typically have 17 characters per line and 27-28 (or 31) … Continue reading →

Posted in archaeology, Chinese writing, Dunhuang, epigraphy, Palaeography, Scribal habits | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

An unrecognized photo of Aurel Stein

Posted on 01/14/2012 by imre

Last week we went down for a few days to the south of Hungary and while there I wanted to see at a village called Gádoros, near Orosháza, the “museum” of Zsigmond Justh (1863-1894), a talented Hungarian writer who died … Continue reading →

Posted in 19th century, archaeology, Aurel Stein, exploration, History of scholarship | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Manuscripts and Travellers in your local bookstore

Posted on 12/22/2011 by imre

Sam van Schaik and Imre Galambos, Manuscripts and Travellers: The Sino-Tibetan Documents of a Tenth-Century Buddhist Pilgrim (Berlin: de Gruyter, 2012). Our book is finally out. It all started about 5 years ago when Sam asked me if I wanted to join … Continue reading →

Posted in archaeology, Aurel Stein, books, Dunhuang, Palaeography, published papers, Scribal habits, Tibetan, Travel | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The role of A. O. Hobbs in the third Otani expedition

Posted on 07/11/2011 by imre

Putting my earlier articles online: An English participant in the Japanese exploration of Central Asia: The role of A. O. Hobbs in the third Otani expedition (Imre Galambos) In I. F. Popova, ed., Russian Expeditions to Central Asia at the … Continue reading →

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Reversed inscriptions: Chinese writing going from left to right

Posted on 06/21/2011 by imre

I have come across an inscription which is read in reversed order, that is, from left to right. This is a famous inscription called Mogaoku ji (Record of the Mogao Caves) on the wall of the antechamber of Cave 156 … Continue reading →

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The Third Ōtani Expedition at Dunhuang

Posted on 06/21/2011 by imre

Putting some of my older publications online: The Third Ōtani Expedition at Dunhuang: Acquisition of the Japanese Collection of Dunhuang Manuscripts (Imre Galambos) Journal of Inner Asian Art and Archaeology 3/2008: 29-35 Aurel Stein’s 1907 visit to the hidden cave … Continue reading →

Posted in 20th century, archaeology, Dunhuang, exploration, Japanese, Otani expeditions, published papers | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Japanese ‘Spies’ along the Silk Road

Posted on 06/21/2011 by imre

Putting some of my older publications online: Japanese ‘Spies’ along the Silk Road: British Suspicions Regarding the Second Otani Expedition (1908-09) (Imre Galambos) Japanese Religions, Vol. 35, 1& 2(2010): 33-61 Abstract: The beginning of the 20th century saw the Golden … Continue reading →

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Aurel Stein – Flowers to Lajos Lóczy

Posted on 04/19/2011 by imre

Last summer we were at Lake Balaton in western Hungary and decided to take a day trip to the Balatonarács cemetery to visit the grave of the famous Hungarian explorer and geologist Lajos Lóczy (1849-1920). In the West, he is … Continue reading →

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Impossible dates in manuscripts

Posted on 10/01/2010 by imre

Every now and then we come across impossible dates in Chinese manuscripts and inscriptions, which refer to years in reign periods that never existed. The common explanation for these is that the place where the manuscript was written was remote … Continue reading →

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Criticism of Chen Mengjia by fellow scholars

Posted on 03/10/2010 by imre

Reading on the history of simplified characters I came across a small book called 1957年文字改革辩论选辑 (Shanghai: Xin zhishi, 1958) which contains a series of articles from contemporary periodicals about the writing reform. I was surprised to find two vicious articles … Continue reading →

Posted in 20th century, archaeology, Chinese writing, History of scholarship | Tagged , , | 2 Comments