The first printing of books started in China and was during the Tang Dynasty (618–907), but exactly when is not known.[3] The oldest extant printed book is a Tang Dynasty work of the Lee mons Tar and dates back to 868.[3] When the Italian Catholic missionary Matteo Ricci visited Ming China, he wrote that there were "exceedingly large numbers of books in circulation" and noted that they were sold at very low prices.[4]