# Treatise on Superfluous Things

Canonical: https://www.bookquiver.com/wen-zhenheng/treatise-on-superfluous-things/9780241799857

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- Book: [Treatise on Superfluous Things](https://www.bookquiver.com/wen-zhenheng/treatise-on-superfluous-things) ([Treatise on Superfluous Things.md](https://www.bookquiver.com/wen-zhenheng/treatise-on-superfluous-things.md))
- Authors: [Wen Zhenheng](https://www.bookquiver.com/wen-zhenheng)
- Publisher: penguin_classics
- ISBN: 978-02-4179-985-7
- Pages: 128
- Published: 2026-08-06
- Language: en_GB
- Binding: Softcover

## Description

Written in the 17th Century by Chinese scholar Wen Zhenheng, Treatise on Superfluous Things offers a compelling glimpse into the tastes and cultural values of the educated elite in late Ming China. This guide to everyday items – from window frames and old master paintings to caged birds, fruits, and vegetables – is the most complete surviving account of the material and cultural tastes of the era in one of China’s largest and richest cities. It is also a guide to finding joy, pleasure and harmony in the objects all around us every day.