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colophons are not only a very intriguing and peculiar literary subject to study, but also significant historical sources to develop. This article has a threefold purpose: to present colophons as sources, to provide a detailed description of the surviving Brag dkar rta so works, and to give examples of translation. Extracting information from colophons, it is possible to have a most accurate picture of lha btsun Rin chen rnam rgyal entourage, and the progress of the work at Brag dkar rta so, a well-known monastery founded by lha btsun, one of the closest disciples of gTsang smyon Heruka.

Karl-Heinz Everding, Tibetische Handschriften und Blockdrucke. Die mTshurphu-Ausgabe der Sammlung Rin-chen gter-mdzod chen-mo, nach dem Exemplar der Orientabteilung Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin -Preussischer Kulturbesitz, Teil 14, Bände 52-63, Verzeichnis der orientalischen Handschriften in Deutschland xi, Stuttgart, Steiner, 2008, 320 pp., isbn 978-3-515-07348-6. This book is the fifth part of the Rin chen gter mdzod chen mo ("The Great Treasury [of] Precious [gter mas]") catalogue of the mTshur phu edition. The previous four were edited by Peter Schwieger,1 whereas the book under review is edited by Karl-Heinz Everding. Schwieger's books describe the first volumes of this extensive collection, which was edited by Kong sprul Blo gros mtha' yas (1813-1899).2 Each book contains the description of several volumes, namely: Schwieger . Everding's book describes the last dpe chas (52-63), but it was published in 2008, one year before the fourth part of this catalogue.

lHa btsun Rin chen rnam rgyal (1473-1557), one of the main disciples of gTsang smyon Heruka (1452-1507), is renowned for having continued his master’s cultural project after his death. The project consisted in the compilation, editing, writing and printing of many works of bka’ brgyud pa’s masters, especially biographies. Such an ambitious enterprise required extensive support and had to rely on a wide network of patronage. gTsang smyon’s success in such a difficult undertaking was due to the fact that he developed close, personal ties with numerous political leaders of Western Tibet and also with some  leading scholars of his time thanks to his status of well-respected religious master. lHa btsun used to accompany gTsang smyon during his fund raising tours. This fact and his increasing fame as an excellent master enabled lHa btsun to establish relationships with these patrons as well. Some of his master’s sponsors continued to support his editorial activity after gTsang smyon’s death. Rin chen rnam rgyal’s undertaking was also facilitated by the fact that he belonged to the royal family of Mang yul Gung thang, who was the most important sponsor of his work.
This paper will explore lHa btsun’s patronage network in the South-western Tibet, which involved a wide range of people of different social standing. When carrying out his editorial activity and his renovation works of the Svayaṃbhūnāth stūpa and ‘Phags pa lha khang, the temple hosting the well-known statue of the self-appeared Ārya Va ti bzang po, he had to mobilise a host of people in different capacity. According to numerous Gung thang sources, some of the famous craftsmen who used to work with him at his printing activity, not only participated in the renovation works supervised by Rin chen rnam rgyal, but were also mentioned as sponsors. The same occurred for many of the minor patrons of lHa btsun’s several printings mentioned in long colophons with their very small donations ranging from butter to tea, cups, ritual items, boots etc. lHa btsun Rin chen rnam rgyal’s enterprises therefore show that they were not merely driven by the elites of the time but involved a wider popular support.

373 On a Particular Aspect of the Identification of Tibetan Xylographs: 1 I would like to thank all colleagues and friends who helped me in different ways over the years: first of all my former Professor, Elena De Rossi Filibeck, for introducing me to this subject and for passing the initial idea of the TiBET project on to me; Dr. Hildegard Diemberger for giving me the opportunity of collaborating in the AHRC project and for helping me with the TiBET project; Professor in 2011, Mr. Nam Raj Gurung, the manager, the staff of the Centre, Dr. Michael Pahlke, Punya Parajuli and the staff at the National Archives for their precious help during my stay in Kathmandu; the organisers of this conference, and Mary-Elisabeth Cox for revising this essay.

This article presents some preliminary results of the study of the drawn frames found in the title pages of 16 th -century Tibetan xylographs from the kingdom of Mang yul Gung thang (South-western Tibet). Usually the title pages of Gung thang prints have very similar and characteristic drawn frames, which are typical of xylographs printed in this area in the 16 th century. They may vary from a simple to a more elaborated design, which may differ even in xylographs produced at the same printing house. Title pages have been examined by the authors with the aim of understanding whether the different designs of drawings could be associated with a certain artist or a certain printing house. A description of identified types of drawings and minor variations is provided in the article. An appendix with information on artists working on title frames is also included. || 1 On the Mang yul Gung thang kingdom and its role in the Tibetan printing history, see Clemente 2016a; Clemente 2017; Diemberger and Clemente 2013; Clemente, Diemberger, Helman-Ważny and Lunardo (forthcoming); a database which contains detailed description of prints, transliteration and mark-up of colophons, entries of personal and place names, and information on paper and pigments, if available. Michela Clemente Unauthenticated Download Date | 12/25/17 12:25 PM Unauthenticated Download Date | 12/25/17 12:25 PM Typology of Drawn Frames in 16th Century Mang yul Gung thang Xylographs | 289