A Tsinghua journalism feature traces Zhao Liming’s decades of work on Nüshu texts and the women who used them.

Zhao Liming crossing a river during fieldwork in Jiangyong in the 1980s.
Zhao Liming crossing a river during fieldwork in Jiangyong in the 1980s.受访者供图 / 清华大学清新时报Source · qxcm.tsjc.tsinghua.edu.cn

Collecting writing also means recording the voices, practices and relationships that give a document its context.

A map of the Nüshu region drawn by Zhao Liming.
A map of the Nüshu region drawn by Zhao Liming.赵丽明 绘 / 《中国女书集成》 / 清新时报Source · qxcm.tsjc.tsinghua.edu.cn
Nüshu tradition-bearer Gao Yinxian (1902–1990).
Nüshu tradition-bearer Gao Yinxian (1902–1990).《传奇女书——花蹊君子女九簪》 / 清新时报Source · qxcm.tsjc.tsinghua.edu.cn
Nüshu tradition-bearer Yi Nianhua (1907–1991).
Nüshu tradition-bearer Yi Nianhua (1907–1991).《传奇女书——花蹊君子女九簪》 / 清新时报Source · qxcm.tsjc.tsinghua.edu.cn
Yang Huanyi (1909–2004) writing Nüshu.
Yang Huanyi (1909–2004) writing Nüshu.《传奇女书——花蹊君子女九簪》 / 清新时报Source · qxcm.tsjc.tsinghua.edu.cn