Abstract
Chinese Historians who worked on the history of mathematics in the Republic of China and were active between 1917 and 1949, such as Li Yan 李儼 (1892-1963) and Qian Baocong 錢寶琮 (1892-1974), wrote for both antiquarian and programmatic reasons. With their detailed studies of Chinese mathematical achievements and of the traditional institutional framework, they weighed in debates about the value and viability of Chinese traditional culture.
They also - more subtly - offered comments on the educational system and the balance between academic and practical motivations of study. Whereas Li Yan's standpoint was mostly implicit in his works, such as in his articles on the History of Chinese mathematical education, Qian Baocong inserted into his works and speeches more articulated comments about key topics, including how state and mathematics, and more generally science, should coexist.
In this sense, they both offered lessons from the past. The presentation intends to show how their work prepared the ground for the establishment of a Cabinet for the History of Natural Sciences 自然科學史研究室 in the state-sponsored Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
Li Yan and Qian Baocong were both coopted to the Cabinet, the precursor of the present-day Institute for the History of Natural Sciences 自然科學史研究所 in Beijing.