Cheng-Gao versions

In the study of the classic Chinese novel Dream of the Red Chamber, the Cheng-Gao versions or Cheng-Gao editions (程高本) refer to two illustrated, woodblock print editions of the book, published in 1791 and 1792, both entitled The Illustrated Dream of the Red Chamber (绣像红楼梦). The 1791 version, produced at the year's end, was the novel's earliest print edition. A revised edition, differing in minor details, was published less than eighty days after the first print edition in early 1792. Both editions were edited by Cheng Weiyuan (程伟元) and Gao E and were published by Suzhou's Cuiwen Book House (萃文书屋).

The Cheng-Gao versions mark a departure from earlier scribal copies of Dream of the Red Chamber. Cheng and Gao removed commentaries made by Zhiyanzhai, added illustrations, and changed the title (previously known as The Story of the Stone 石头记). They made extensive edits as well as added a 40-chapter continuation to the novel, now known as the Cheng-Gao continuation, which they claimed to be authorial. This 40-chapter ending is now the continuation read by most readers.

Hu Shih in the 1920s referred to the 1791 version as the Chengjia edition (程甲本, "Cheng-A book") and the 1792 version as the Chengyi edition (程乙本, "Cheng-B book"). These remain the names they are known in the field of Redology. From the mid-20th century until the 1980s the Chengyi edition was the most read, studied and reprinted Dream version in Taiwan owing to Hu Shih's influence. In China, the People's Literature Publishing House (人民文学出版社) published an annotated 1982 edition based on the Rouge versions, effectively ending the era where the Cheng-Gao versions were used extensively. The 1982 People's Literature Publishing House edition was edited by a team of scholars from the "Red Chamber Dream Academy" (红楼梦研究所), which included influential Redologist Feng Qiyong (冯其庸). This 1982 edition was subsequently revised in 2008 and 2015.

Original Cheng-Gao editions are now very rare and are highly prized collector's items – less than twenty copies are believed to be extant.

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Wikipedia