The first full Dutch translation of the 120-chapter Dream of the Red Chamber， completed by three Dutch sinologists and translators after 13 years of painstaking collaborative work， was officially published in the Netherlands recently.

The four-volume， 2，160-page translation was translated by Dutch sinologists and translators Silvia Marijnissen， Mark Leenhouts， and Anne Sytske Keijser. It is published by Athenaeum Press.

In a written interview with Xinhua News Agency， Keijser said that translating Dream of the Red Chamber was “a longer and more difficult process than we had imagined.”

Initially， the three sinologists and translators planned to complete the translation of this Chinese classic in about eight years. In the end， it took them 13 years to complete the translation， out of a desire for perfection.

The target audience of this Dream of the Red Chamber， she said， is the general Dutch public. She hoped that Dutch readers could immerse themselves in this novel where they can “meet fascinating characters and learn about a rich culture.”

When asked about how they started translating Dream of the Red Chamber， Keijser said that during her long collaboration with the two other translators， they often discussed translation strategies and the importance of Chinese classical literature. “For us， this novel is the epitome of Chinese classical literature and culture. There is no classical Chinese novel culturally richer and more worthy of translation than Dream of the Red Chamber.”

In a recent article from the mainstream Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant， renowned Dutch scholar Henk Propper said， “For two weeks， I have immersed myself in a novel of more than 2，000 pages.” He said that Dream of the Red Chamber is a “fascinating novel， unique because it is easy to understand and suitable for all readers.”

The full Dutch translation of Dream of the Red Chamber is now available in bookstores in the Netherlands and also sold online. The Amsterdam Academic and Cultural Center plans to celebrate the book’s publication in early December.

（Author： Wang Xiangjiang）