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Two rare volumes of an ancient Chinese encyclopedia sold for more than €8 million ($9 million) at auction on Tuesday, more than 1,000 times the estimated price. The encyclopedia, known as the Yongle Dadian, was originally commissioned by Yongle Emperor, the third ruler of the Ming Dynasty, who reigned from 1402 to 1424. More than 2,000 scholars worked on the encyclopedia between 1404 and 1408, according to Beaussant Lefèvre, the Paris-based auction house that made the sale.

The Yongle Dadian is the largest encyclopedia in the world, and originally consisted of 22,877 chapters. In 1562, the Jiajing Emperor, the 11th Ming ruler, ordered two copies of the encyclopedia to be made, but the original was lost due to many wars, thefts and fires that occurred under the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the auction house said.

While the two volumes sold on Tuesday are copies, they are extremely rare, with only 400 known volumes, or 4% of the original encyclopedia, left in existence. The books, which measure 20 inches by 12 inches, were written in red and black ink on paper. While printing techniques had been developed at the time, the encyclopedia was written by hand due to its length. One volume is about the lakes of China and the other informs readers about funeral rites. Together, they were bought by an unnamed buyer for €8.128 million including fees. Before the auction, they carried a price estimate of €5,000-€8,000.

1.Who first had the idea of working on the Yongle Dadian?

A Beaussant Lefèvre.

B Yongle Emperor.

C Many scholars.

D Jiajing Emperor.

解析：选B。细节理解题。根据文章第一段第二句The encyclopedia, known as the Yongle Dadian, was originally commissioned by Yongle Emperor可以得知编纂该百科全书是明朝的永乐皇帝的想法，故选B。

2.Which is not the reason why the original was lost?

A Because of thefts.

B Because of floods.

C Because of wars.

D Because of fires.

解析：选B。推理判断题。根据文章第二段第二句but the original was lost due to many wars, thefts and fires that occurred under the Ming Dynasty可以得知原本是由于盗窃、火灾或者战乱而丢失，并未提到是因为洪水，故选B。

3.Why weren’t the volumes printed then?

A They were so rare.

B They just wanted the black ink.

C They had very special sizes.

D Printing techniques had not been developed.

解析：选C。推理判断题。根据文章第三段第二句While printing techniques had been developed at the time, the encyclopedia was written by hand due to its length可以得知是由于尺寸问题而没法用印刷的方式，故选C。

4.What can we learn about the Yongle Dadian?

A About 2,000 scholars worked on it.

B It’s the second largest encyclopedia in the world.

C The two volumes sold on Tuesday are original.

D Jiajing Emperor ordered to make two copies.

解析：选D。细节理解题。根据文章第二段In 1562, the Jiajing Emperor, the 11th Ming ruler, ordered two copies of the encyclopedia to be made可以得知1562年，明朝第11任统治者嘉靖皇帝下令制作了两本手抄本，故选D。