NANJING: Hundreds of copies of a pure gold classical Chinese book have been sold.

Copies of the golden "Zhou Yi," or "Classic of Change," usually given to heads of state, are flying off the shelves in Nanjing, capital of East China's Jiangsu Province, for around US$1,700.

But the price is said to have risen to more than US$3,500 in Shandong Province.

Scores of people are flocking to have a look at the limited edition in Nanjing.

"Zhou Yi" is the oldest Chinese philosophical classic, about the metaphysical world. Different from other editions, this book is made of pure gold and costs 14,600 yuan (US$1,760).

Many people are curious.

"I just want to see with my own eyes what a gold book looks like, how much it costs and how many books are available in the bookstore," said Zhang Yu, a 29-year-old citizen.

"The newspaper said the Foreign Ministry gives the book as a State gift to heads of other countries, which attracted me," said a middle-aged man from Changzhou, a city about two hours' ride from Nanjing.

Chen Zhenyu, who works for the Beijing Zhongjin Foundation Science Technology Development Co Ltd, which produced the book, said many people were interested in buying the book.

"A couple of days ago when the book was first on display in the store, four customers ordered one," Chen said yesterday afternoon. "And this morning, another three books have been ordered."

"I believe there are many people having the economic strength to buy the book in Nanjing and nearby cities. If they love traditional culture, they will consider buying such a book worthwhile," he added.

According to him, only about 60 gold books will be sold in Nanjing. But altogether 5,000 copies of the gold book are being distributed both at home and abroad. Three-thousand will be sold in China.

"In fact, most of the books have already been sold. There are only several hundred left," Chen said. "I have heard that the price of the book has risen to more than 30,000 yuan (US$3,614) in East China's Shandong Province."

It has 28 pages, containing approximately 30,000 characters and some pictures. The Beijing Zhongjin Foundation Science Technology Development Co Ltd has produced four pure gold books.

The other three are "Mao Zedong Poem Script," "Giant Deng Xiaoping" and "The Art of War by Sun Zi."

All four gold books are designated as State gifts by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and presented to heads of state.

(China Daily 05/26/2005 page3)