Modern Families in Turbulent China

The breakdown of order in the early 20th century in China placed many people in an uncertain position. The scholarly class lost relevance as the civil service examinations for mandarins were abolished. Foreign imperialism weakened the state, but also opened up...

Digging It!

In the summer of 2019, Dr Peter J Cobb, a joint appointee of the Faculties of Education and Arts, decided to create a course around his archaeological fieldwork in Armenia. The idea was that HKU students would travel to the country the following summer to help with...

Money, Markets and the Rise of Modern China

In the 18th century, the Qing dynasty was at its height: China was a global superpower and its coffers were full. By the end of the next century, all that had changed. While other major regions, in particular Europe and North America, were industrialising, China...

Money and the State

Money is different things to different people, none more so than economists and anthropologists. Economists often see money as an instrument that makes bartering in the market run smoother – it’s easier to trade dollars than lug around actual cows and bags of rice for...

Paintings from Myanmar’s Lost Transition

Myanmar’s tumultuous history has not only been a major research focus for Professor Ian Holliday, it has impacted him personally. When the country began to open up just over a decade ago, he was Dean of Social Sciences at HKU. Given the significance of the changes at...