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The Yongle Encyclopedia, in 2014, on display at the National Library of China The Yongle Encyclopedia volume 2262 A page from the manuscript of 'Yongle Encyclopedia'. Chester Beatty Library
The Yongle Encyclopedia ( English: /jɒŋlə/) or Yongle Dadian (traditional Chinese: 永樂大典; simplified Chinese: 永乐大典; pinyin: Yǒnglè Dàdiǎn; Wade–Giles: Yung-lo Ta-tien; lit. 'Great Canon of Yongle') is a Chinese leishu encyclopedia commissioned by the Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–1424) of the Ming dynasty in 1403 and completed by 1408. It comprised 22,937 manuscript rolls in 11,095 volumes. Fewer than 400 volumes survive today, comprising about 800 rolls, or 3.5% of the original work.