Aletta Jacobs’ fan
collection highlight
Aletta Jacobs travelled around the world together with Carrie Chapman Catt. In 1912 they visited China, where Aletta Jacobs received this beautiful fan from Sophia Chang. She was the acting president of the organization for women’s suffrage in Shanghai.
The fan was handmade by Chang herself. On it one can find a verse in Chinese characters. Just before their arrival, Jacobs and Catt had heard that Chinese women had taken seats in the various national and regional meetings that Sun Yat-Sen had initiated.
In her published ‘Travel letters from Africa and Asia’ Jacobs provides a captivating report of their travel experiences.
