Review Article on Making the Palace Machine Work. Mobilising People, Objects and Nature in the Qing Empire

This book fills a significant gap in the literature by examining the functioning of the Qing state through the lens of one of its most important structures: the imperial palace. The Qing palace is considered not only as an architectural compound, but also as a complex and dynamic set of operations that sustained the daily lives of the imperial family and extended their influence beyond the boundaries of the imperial city. Throughout the book, the various endeavours of the Imperial Household Department have been studied as aspects of the transformation of Chinese society towards modernity. Governed by a rigorous system of laws and regulations, the department ensured replicability, accountability and economic efficiency. In the final essay, the editors propose the term "machine-body" (ji ti) as an alterative to the metaphor of the Qing palace as a perfect, fully operational machine. This Chinese term "describes equally well the physical presence of a machine, an institution, and a living body'' (p. 293). They argue that, as the essays in the book reveal, empire-making was "an artisanal process of forging and tinkering", because "artefact-making is empire-making at its most elemental level" (p. 293). While not explicitly mentioned by the editors, I believe this book not only enriches our understanding of early modern China and its society under foreign rule (the Qing were Manchus, not Han Chinese), but also offers insights to scholars of the history of science investigating the global dimension of the discipline. Indeed, over the past thirty years, the debate surrounding the contribution of skilled artisans and practitioners to the rise of modern science has led historians of science to reconsider their methodologies and analytical categories. By shifting the focus from Qing political networks and high-ranking bureaucracy to the daily operations of low-ranking officials, artisans and practitioners, this book enriches the ongoing debate while challenging the discipline's persisting Eurocentric bias.