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Arts & Communication

PERSPECTIVE ARTICLE
Mapping and taking academic turns in

collection history studies: Reflections on the
issues of the Journal of the History of Collections

2
1
Da Zeng *, Ruihan Shuai , and Jialin Mo 2
1 Academic Affairs office, Capital Normal University, 100048, Beijing, China
2 Academy of Fine Arts, Capital Normal University, 100048, Beijing, China

Abstract
This paper translates and collates the contents of all the issues published by the
Journal of the History of Collections, one of Oxford University Press’s academic
journals, since its inception in 1989. A detailed analysis of the changes in article
topics or themes in the journal is presented, based on which this paper demonstrates
that the focus of research in this field has undergone three shifts on a decennial
basis. By examining collectors’ social identities, motives for collecting, and changes
in collection categories, this paper provides significant insights into a theoretical
framework that sustains the scholarship. It also provides a preliminary overview of
current studies on the history of collections in both Chinese and Western academia,
seeking to provide some guidance for future explorations of the scholarship.

*Corresponding author: Keywords: Research methodology for collection history studies; Collectors’ social
Da Zeng identities; Motive for collecting; Collection category
(1600757018@qq.com)
Citation: Zeng D, Shuai R, and
Mo J, 2023, Mapping and taking
academic turns in collection history
studies: Reflections on the issues 1. Motivations for research
of the Journal of the History of This paper is an extension of my previous studies that have reviewed the research results
Collections.
Arts & Communication, 1(1): 359 presented by Chinese scholars in their studies of collection history. Regrettably, we still
https://doi.org/10.36922/ac.359 lack a systematic and sophisticated theoretical framework as new research angles and
Received: February 6, 2023 methods have not been accepted by local academia. Collection history studies in China
are inclined toward the traditional approaches used in art history studies. In other words,
Accepted: February 9, 2023
it is more likely for Chinese researchers to focus on how to crystallize the formation of
Published Online: March 1, 2023 known collector circles and identify their core members, knowing the epochal features,
Copyright: © 2023 Author(s). and second-hand literary archives . Having said that, by examining specific case studies,
[1]
This is an Open Access article such as collectors of the Song Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty, and the Republic of China, as
distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution well as sorting out primary materials, such as the literary records, diaries, and letters
License, permitting distribution, of collectors, some scholars do, to a certain extent, restore the genealogy of collection
and reproduction in any medium, transfer for some collections.
provided the original work is
properly cited. However, these scholars still fail to avail themselves to new angles and methods
Publisher’s Note: AccScience that could unearth more information, and their investigation, which is ignorant of
Publishing remains neutral with spatial development, is often limited to temporal aspects, precluding definite answers
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional to key issues, such as whether or not collector circles remain the core of research
affiliations. while scholarly exploration works toward the division of collection history. This,

Volume 1 Issue 1 (2023) 1 https://doi.org/10.36922/ac.359