Enchanted by Lohans

Finnish-Swedish art historian Osvald Sirén (1879-1966) was one of the pioneers of Chinese art scholarship in the West. This biography focuses on his four major voyages to East Asia: 1918, 1921-23, 1929-30 and 1935. This was a pivotal period in Chinese archaeology, art studies and formation of Western collections of Chinese art. Sirén gained international renown as a scholar of Italian art, particularly with his books on Leonardo da Vinci and Giotto. But when he was almost 40 years old, he was ca