The translation manuscript of The Story of the Stone covers chapter 2 to chapter 80 of the story, totalling 2,210 pages.  They were acquired by the RCT in September 1997 and have been preserved carefully by the Centre ever since.  In 2013, RCT decided to place the manuscript at the University Library for better conservation.  Further, as the most important achievement of Professor Hawkes, The Story of the Stone has been a superb example of literary translation, and has set new, higher standards for Chinese literature in translation ever since its publication.  In order to allow more readers and scholars worldwide to read the manuscript, to study the journey of Professor Hawkes in tackling the challenges of translation, to witness first-hand how the great Chinese classic came alive in another language, and try to study when, how and why certain translation decisions were made, RCT worked with the Library to digitize the manuscript and it is now available for public access.

David Hawkes Archive is indeed the first collection available through the CUHK Chinese Literature Translation Archive that will be set up soon by the joint efforts of the RCT, the Department of Translation and the Library to give valuable insights into the life and work of translators.  It is hoped that by sharing these great treasures, people will be inspired to follow in translators' footsteps, and join in the endeavour to share with the rest of the world some of the best of Chinese Literature.