Refers to a book with only one version circulating in the world. Also refers to the loss of the only unpublished manuscript or original, and the only remaining rubbings.
An orphan is a book with only one copy, including the old rubbings of an inscription and unpublished manuscripts of a book with only one copy.
The earliest printed matter in the world-The Diamond Sutra, printed in China in the Tang Dynasty (AD 868), is an orphan. Another example is the novel "After the Water Margin" published by Feng Chun Literature and Art Publishing House in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, which is a treasure among the treasures collected and printed by Dalian Library. Because it is extremely rare, its price is one hundred times higher.
How to know orphan books;
1. Because some of the original stone carvings or discs were damaged and lost earlier, some traces left by them are not the original. According to the textual research of historical materials and written records, this tablet that is about to be lost is really unique and has high cultural and historical value.
2. To call it an orphan, it must be the original rubbings of carved stone posts, and pirated ones cannot be called it. At the same time, it should be earlier rubbings, such as Tang rubbings and Song rubbings. The rubbings in Ming Dynasty were relatively poor. If it is A Qing rubbings, it is often not called this nickname. Inscriptions unearthed in the Qing Dynasty do not belong to this category.
3. Some orphan books are still incomplete volumes. At first, the initial expansion was incomplete. However, the remnants can explain the status and value of orphans.