Sven Hedin and Wong Wenhao

The Director of Geological Survey (地质调查所) Wong Wenhao (翁文灏) and Swedish explorer Sven Hedin had close contacts from 1920s to 1940s. They jointly promoted cooperation between the Geological Survey and the Sino-Swedish Expedition (西北科学考查团) in scientific exploration of Northwest China, the publication of research carried out by the Expedition, and the compilation of a detailed map of the region. This article uses previously unpublished correspondence between Wong Wenhao and Sven Hedin in the Sven Hedin Archives of the Riksarkivet together with other archival materials of the Geological Survey, to explore the communication that lasted for more than two decades between the two men. The aim is to reveal a more comprehensive picture of the earliest known Sino-Swedish scientific expedition agreement and the lasting scientific exchanges between China and Sweden in the post expedition era, and to contribute new findings to the study of the Sino-Swedish Expedition, the Geological Survey, as well as the history of Chinese maps.