Time: June 12, 2026, 09:30—11:30
Venue: Room B206, Humanities Building, Tsinghua University
Topic: Sven Hedin, Johan Gunnar Andersson and the Rise of Chinese Archaeology
Speaker: Associate Professor Wang Xinchun (College of History and Culture, Northwest Normal University)
Lecture Introduction:
The Swedish archaeologist Johan Gunnar Andersson and the explorer and geographer Sven Hedin are two of the most representative Swedish scholars in the history of Chinese archaeology. In 1905, Sven Hedin invited Andersson to conduct a geological expedition to Xizang, thus marking the beginning of their cooperation in scientific expeditions and research centered on China. During Andersson's tenure at the Geological Survey, Sven Hedin began to establish initial connections with Chinese academic institutions and fostered the Geological Survey's focus on geology and archaeology in northwest China. During the visit of the Crown Prince of Sweden to China in 1926, the first Sino-foreign archaeological plan for northwest China with equal cooperation was jointly formulated by four academic institutions (individuals) from China, Sweden and the United States. Subsequently, the Geological Survey signed an agreement for scientific expeditions with Sven Hedin. In the subsequent negotiations between Sven Hedin and the Chinese Academic Association and the establishment of the Northwest Scientific Expedition Team, Andersson played a crucial role and laid the foundation for the archaeological research of Western scholars in the expedition team. After Andersson returned to Sweden in 1927, he also provided strong support to Sven Hedin in various aspects such as securing funds for expeditions and research, and the collection, exhibition and study of archaeological specimens. Through their close collaboration, they jointly promoted the progress of Swedish research in archaeology and other scientific fields in China during the first half of the 20th century.
Speaker Profile:
Wang Xinchun, from Yichang, Hubei Province, is an associate professor at the College of History and Culture, Northwest Normal University. He presides over one project each of the National Social Science Fund "Special Research on Rare 'Lost Ancient Learning' and National History" and one sub-project of the Major Historical Issues Research Special Project of the Chinese Academy of Historical Sciences, with research directions in the history of archaeology and the history of Sino-Western cultural exchanges.