A silk blue-ground brocade panel, late Qing dynasty/early 20th century.

From the Collection of Edit Pettersson (1890-1970).

Edit was born in Eskilstuna, Sweden, and studied to be a midwife at Löweströmska hospital in Väsby. She graduated in Stockholm 1913, and after working for 2 years as a private midwife/nurse with a family in Värmland, she travelled with the Sibirian railroad to China, and settled in Kiaockow in 1915 to work as midwife with the missionaries there. In 1920 she fell ill and was nursed at the German Hospital and then began her journey back, taking the S.S. Empress of Asia for the first leg of the travel, a stemer famous for crossing the Pacific in nine days, two hours, and fifteen minutes. She came to spend 5 years in China and kept in close contact throughout her life with the connections she made out there. She had a god son of the Emperor living with her and her husband in Hagalund, when he had fled China temporarily due to the political situation. The items have been treasured memories of the family since.