Berthold Laufer: Expeditions

For this first expedition on behalf of the Field Museum, Laufer moved around in China and Tibet in direct violation of the restrictions placed on his movements by British and Chinese authorities. The opening remarks in the Museum's 1908 annual report underscore the fears that Laufer would be discovered and the expedition canceled: "For certain reasons it does not seem advisable at this time to comment at any length on the investigations of Dr. Berthold Laufer."

Laufer's expedition to China and Tibet under the Blackstone fund concluded in 1910 with collections comprising 10,000 objects for the Museum. Laufer also collected publications of Chinese and Tibetan literature on behalf of the Crear and Newberry Libraries in Chicago: the Newberry contributed $4,000 to be expended by Laufer in the purchase of a library of Tibetan Literature.

1908 Ethnological Expedition to Sikkim and Bhutan Asia Tibetan ethnology B. Laufer Annual Report (1908) Vol. 3, No. 3 (p. 238)

1909 Blackstone Expedition to China and Tibet Asia General collection of ethnology and investigations B. Laufer Annual Report (1909) Vol. 3. No. 4 (p. 352)

1910 Blackstone Expedition to China and Tibet Asia Ethnological specimens B. Laufer Annual Report (1910) Vol. 4 No. 1 (p. 22)

Painting: pigment, paper. Blackstone Chinese and Tibetan Expedition - 1908-1910, Berthold Laufer : Field Museum of Natural History. (c) Field Museum of Natural History - CC BY-NC 4.0

According to the entry on Berthold Laufer written by Ben Bronson for Curators, Collections and Contexts Anthropology at the Field Museum 1893-2002, The Captain Marshall Field Expedition was "a quick affair devoid of the hardship of earlier journeys." Laufer decided to concentrate on Beijing and Shanghai, which were at that time not only the centers for the trade in antiquities but also the emporiums for all good manufactures throughout the empire.

Laufer spent ten weeks in Beijing, taking several short excursions to nearby places and a longer four-day trip with the American ambassador to view the Buddhist cave-temples at Yungang. Six weeks in Shanghai were broken by one- and two-day train trips to the ancient cultural capitals of Hangzhou and Suzhou. Laufer returned to Chicago with approximately 1,800 purchased artifacts for the Museum. 

1923 Captain Marshall Field Expedition to China Asia Ethnological and archaeological collections B. Laufer Annual Report (1923) Vol. 6. No. 3 (p.195)

Mariner's Compass. Accession Number: [1462] Captain Marshall Field Ethnological Expedition to China (Gift). (c) Field Museum of Natural History - CC BY-NC 4.0