The Zaigai Hihô project undertakes archival research on East Asian objects in museums and private collections in Switzerland. The aim is to closely study and document the individual objects and to also examine the histories of contact between Switzerland and East Asia. This investigation involves not only the objects themselves, but also the people, institutional frameworks, as well as economic, cultural, and personal networks. Thus the project will contribute to an understanding of the transnational cultural transfers between Switzerland and East Asia.