Exploitation of the Works of Nature

　　The book was divided into 18 categories, covering almost all the important production technologies and processes in agriculture and handicrafts. Three categories deal with mining and metallurgy technology and hardware, with five others on mining and processing of nonmetal minerals.

　　Thanks to the advanced technology, the scale, output of the metal smelting and processing industry in the Ming Dynasty occupied a leading position in the world. So the book devoted one fourth of the length to introducing the achievements in this sector, especially in mining, washing, smelting and processing of seven metal minerals, including gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, lead and zinc. 

　　The book was written by Song Yingxing who was born in Jiangxi Province in 1587. It has been referred to as the world's first encyclopedia of agricultural and handicraft production. Soon after it was published, it was translated into several languages including German, Japanese, English and French.