Shan Shili 1856-1943

A native of Xiaoshan, Zhejiang province, she was born to a scholarly family and received education in the classics. In 1898, her husband, Qian Xun (1853-1927), was appointed supervisor of Chinese students in Japan; Shan joined him in Tokyo the next year. From 1899 to 1902 she divided her time between China and Japan. In 1903, Shan travelled with Qian from Japan to Russia, where he took up his new post in the Chinese legation. Travels in the Year Guimao is an account of this journey. Shan again accompanied her husband when, in 1907, Qian was posted to Holland, and a year later, to Italy. Shan wrote Guiqian ji, a record of what she had seen and learned in Europe after her return to China in 1909. After Qian's death in 1927, Shan devoted herself to literary work, and had authored eleven books.

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