Dong jing meng hua lu and Its Author

The article is devoted to a unique Chinese work of the 12th century, Dong jing meng hua lu by Meng Yuan-lao, an unprecedented written source in Chinese history of comprehensive information about urban life during the Northern Song period. The focus of this work is the capital of the Northern Song Empire, the city of Bianjing (Bianliang, modern Kaifeng), described by a contemporary. The material in Dong jing meng hua lu is thematically structured — from the description of the configuration of city walls and locks to markets, entertainment districts, folk festivals and related official holidays and customs. This article comprehensively describes the history of this monument and its organization.