《金刚经》
《金刚经》全称为《金刚般若波罗蜜经》，现藏于英国国家图书馆，它是世界上现存最早的、有明确刊印日期的雕版印刷品。这件《金刚经》为鸠摩罗什译本，全卷首尾完整，由7纸相连成卷，总长近500厘米，每纸高约27厘米，宽约75厘米。每纸刻印佛经48—52行不等，每行18—21字不等，有上下书栏。卷首第1纸为版画，其余6纸为佛经，经卷的尾部书写题记。从这些文字可知它印刷于唐咸通九年（868）农历四月十五，因为有准确的刊印时间，它成为中国印刷史上的一件标志物，并被英国国家图书馆称为“世界上最早的印本书籍”。
这件《金刚经》的卷首版画，表现《金刚经》的序品部分，描绘佛祖释迦牟尼乞食回到给孤独园坐定，长老须菩提向他提问，于是佛祖开始讲说《金刚经》。整部佛经上的文字端正大方，有颜柳楷书风骨。版画和文字都显示出雕版的刀法娴熟，印刷墨色匀称、清晰，属上乘的印刷作品。1914年，这部《金刚经》第一次在英国国家博物馆展出，1973年被转交给了英国国家图书馆。
The Diamond Sutra
Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, or The Diamond Sutra, housed in the British Library, is recognized as the oldest known printed book in the world with a specific publication date. This edition is a translation by Kumārajīva, and it remains complete with both the front and back pages intact. It consists of seven connected sheets totaling nearly 500 centimeters in length, with each sheet measuring 27 centimeters in height, 75 centimeters in width. Each sheet features 48 to 52 lines of text, with each line containing 18 to 21 characters, along with margins at the top and bottom. The first sheet of the scroll includes a woodblock print, while the remaining six sheets contain the sutra text. The colophon at the end of the scroll indicates that it was printed on the 15th day of the fourth month in 868. Due to this precise printing date, The Diamond Sutra has become a significant artifact in the history of Chinese printing, with the British Library referring to it as "the earliest printed book in the world".
The frontispiece of The Diamond Sutra features a woodblock print illustrating the preface section of the sutra. It depicts Sakyamuni returning to the Jeta Grove after begging for alms, where Subhūti poses a question to him, prompting the Buddha to begin his discourse on The Diamond Sutra. The text throughout the sutra is elegantly formatted, showcasing the style of the regular script by Yan Zhenqing (709-784) and Liu Gongquan (778- 865), both renowned calligraphers of the Tang Dynasty for their regular script. Both the print and text demonstrate the skillful carving techniques of woodblock printing, with the ink color being uniform and clear, marking it as a superior example of printing craftsmanship of the time. In 1914, this edition was exhibited for the first time at the British Museum, and in 1973, it was transferred to the British Library.
