Johan Gunnar Andersson

Johan Gunnar Andersson ( born July 3, 1874 in Knista, Orebro, † October 29, 1960 ) was a Swedish archaeologist, paleontologist and geologist.

Andersson studied at the University of Uppsala and took 25 years to one led by Alfred Gabriel Nathorst expedition to Spitsbergen in part. 1898 led Andersson already own expedition to Bear Island. 1902-1903 he was deputy leader of the expedition to Otto Nordenskjölds Swedish Antarctic Expedition.

1906 Andersson was appointed as professor to head the Swedish Agency for geological investigation. In 1914 he was hired by the Chinese government as a geological advisor. Johan Gunnar Andersson's office was the newly established Chinese National Geological Survey ( Dizhi kaochasuo ) and its director, Ding Wenjiang, it soon became a friend. During this time, Andersson helped in the training of Chinese geologists and discovered some iron ore deposits, which were the emerging Chinese industry very helpful. Later Andersson discovered along with his Chinese counterparts, as the researcher Yuan Fuli, previously unknown human debris from the Neolithic period. These were in Henan Province on the Yellow River. The epoch from which the deposits originated was called Yangshao culture, according to a village where you dug up the first discoveries in 1921. Between 1923 and 1924, Andersson took part in archaeological excavations in the provinces of Gansu and Qinghai. Andersson also gained recognition for the dating of the find at Zhoukoudian near Beijing ( Peking Man ), he could attribute to the Paleolithic.

Johan Gunnar Andersson in 1926 was commissioned by the Swedish parliament with the creation of a museum, which should include the collection of archaeological objects that Andersson had brought from China. In the same year, then came the East Asian Museum in Stockholm, which was led by Johan Gunnar Andersson and 1938. A large part of the collection should be returned, according to a Swedish- Chinese treaty, which took place 1927-1936 in seven deliveries. This part of the collection was lost in the following Sino-Japanese War.

Johan Gunnar Andersson published a number of books and scientific reports. The latter appeared mainly in the years writings of the East Asian Museum. His book The gula jordens barn is known ( Children of the yellow earth), which was translated into several foreign languages ​​among others.

In Sweden, he was primarily known for his Chinese research and subsequently received the nickname China - Gunnar. In China he was called to Desheng (安德生).