The last Legal Code of the Yuan Empire: History and Text
From the jural point of view, the Yuan era (1271–1368) can be considered as one of the most interesting in the history of Eastern Asia. This is partly because at that time the Chinese tradition was enriched by a foreign influence. However, very few sources on the Yuan legal system have survived, and even those which did survive are usually far from being complete. The article introduces the recently discovered part of the Zhi-zheng tiao-ge code published in 1346 at the very end of the Yuan Empire. The author lists the testimonia, which mention this document. He also offers the analysis of legal documents mentioned there following the time of their issue. The introduced source is compared with legal codes of the previous years and suggests ways of their reconstruction. The final part of the article contains a brief description of the surviving chapters of the monument. The results of the analysis allow us to see in the Zhi-zheng tiao-ge code an important source on the legislation not only of the late Yuan but also on the Yuan dynasty as a whole.