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Studies in the History of Natural Sciences  2019, Vol. 38 Issue (1): 67-75    DOI:
ARTICLES     
The Trilogy of A. Wylie's Puzzle: Yixing's Observation of Declination
WENREN Jun
California, Sunnyvale 94087 USA
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Abstract  Alexander Wylie (1815～1887), a British missionary and sinologist, published his essay The Magnetic Compass in China in 1859. In it he says that the Buddhist astronomer Yixin(683～727) had discovered declination as early as the 8th century, quoting a passage in support. As Wylie did not provide the source of his quotation or the original Chinese text, this text has been diligently sought for by Chinese and foreign sinologists ever since, but so far without success. The author has ascertained that the original Chinese text of Wylie's quotation is from the Chuaiyue xiaolu, written by the Qing scholar Zhang Zuonan (1772～1850) in 1820. The book is a part of Zhang Zuonan's Cuiwei shanfang shuxue, a work listed in the collection of Wylie's private library. However, Zhang Zuonan's quotation was from Lu Yao's (1723～1785) Qiewenzhai ji. Lu Yao's statement, which includes misunderstandings, came from Yang Guangxian's (1597～1669) Zhenlu lun . Yixing's instructions in rhyme preserved in the Zhenlu lun, along with Li Chunfeng's Zhenshi lun, reveal that the invention in China of the magnetic needle and the observation of declination occurred no later than the eighth century.

Key words： Alexander Wylie      Yixing      magnetic needle      declination      Chuaiyue xiaolu      Qiewenzhai ji      Yang Guangxian      Zhenlu lun     
Received: 15 January 2019      Published: 28 September 2022
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WENREN Jun. The Trilogy of A. Wylie's Puzzle: Yixing's Observation of Declination. Studies in the History of Natural Sciences, 2019, 38(1): 67-75.

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http://www.shns.ac.cn/     OR     http://www.shns.ac.cn/Y2019/V38/I1/67

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