Johann Adam Schall von Bell S.J.

Ein Lebens- und Zeitbild

Aus Anlaß des 400. Geburtstages des Kölner Jesuiten und Chinamissionars Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1592-1666) wurde die 1933 im Bachem-Verlag (Köln) erschienene Biographie von Alfons Väth S.J. neu aufgelegt.

“... a thorough yet lively description of the life and times of a Jesuit courtier in imperial China. It is a work of love. It is not uncritical of the subject but it is partisan, and perhaps that is as a biography should be.”

Arne Sovik
in International Review of Missions

“What is remarkable is how this work remains to this day a grand tale of narrative history and a veritable mine of information that is unsurpassed in treating its subject. ... The scholarly value of the book has been enhanced in the new edition by the addition of a bibliographical addendum by Ms. C. von Collani, in which the bibliography of the first edition is enlarged and brought up to date. In addition, a new index was prepared by Fr. R. Malek, s.v.d. that includes Chinese characters. Finally, a new genealogical tree featuring Schall’s relationship to his family was contributed by a contemporary descendant of Fr. Schall, the Graf Schall-Riaucour. This is a surprisingly inexpensive, well-produced hardbound work that would be a valuable addition to any personal or institutional library in the field of Sino-Western cultural relations.”

D.E. Mungello
in Sino-Western Cultural Relations Journal