The Printed Image in China presents highlights from the entire collection of Chinese prints at the British Museum in this free to enter exhibition. For the first time the Museum will display an overview of one of the most comprehensive and finest collections of Chinese prints outside Asia.
 
Divided into six sections and displayed in broadly chronological order, the prints are grouped under the headings ‘Printing and the Spread of Buddhism’, ‘popularizing elite culture’, ‘popular prints’, ‘printing at court’ the ‘Modern Woodcut Movement’ and ‘modern and contemporary prints’.
 
A set of wooden multi-colour printing blocks and a large imperial copperplate, each accompanied by a corresponding print, help to illustrate major printing techniques. Three spectacular loans from public and private collections complement the show. Among them the Diamond Sutra from 868 AD, the world’s earliest dated printed image.
 
The Printed Image in China is the first exhibition on the Chinese print of this scope and approach. It presents some of the finest and most famous prints ever produced in China, brings an outstanding collection to a wider audience and celebrates the artistic creativity of the Chinese printmaker.