Jin Ping Mei - English Translations

English Translations

The Golden Lotus (1939), translated by Clement Egerton with the assistance of the celebrated Chinese novelist Lao She, who because of the nature of the novel refused to claim any credit for its English version. It was an expurgated, though complete, version. Some of the more explicit parts were rendered into Latin.

• Clement Egerton trans., The Golden Lotus, London, 1938, 4 vols.

In 2008, as part of the Library of Chinese Classics, the Clement Egerton version was republished. In this version there are 5 volumes as the book is in a mirror format with the simplified Chinese next to the English translation.

David Tod Roy's translation, published by Princeton University Press, is considered the best English version:

• The Plum in the Golden Vase, or Chin P'ing Mei: Volume One: The Gathering (1993)
• The Plum in the Golden Vase, or Chin P'ing Mei: Volume Two: The Rivals (2001)
• The Plum in the Golden Vase, or Chin P'ing Mei: Volume Three: The Aphrodisiac (2006)
• The Plum in the Golden Vase, or Chin P'ing Mei: Volume Four: The Climax (2011)

The graphic novelist Magnus created a truncated graphic novel loosely based on the Jin Ping Mei, entitled the 110 Sexpills which focused on the sexual exploits and eventual downfall of Ximen Qing (albeit with the Ximen surname being taken as the character's given name and vice versa).

Zi-Yun Wei was a noted scholar known for his study and published works regarding the Jin Ping Mei.