Arthur Waley and Ella Maillart in Chandolin

Having offered up a brief factoid about the shared accommodations (quite a while apart admittedly) of Arthur Waley and George Chinnery I offer another – I had not know that Waley also met with Ella Maillart, the Swiss explorer, photographer, author and the woman who crossed China with Peter Fleming back in the thirties (i have blogged about her before – see search engine).

How did Waley (who famously never went to China) know Maillart? Apparently in 1937 Waley was skiing in Kitzbuhel in Austria and had an acquaintance with both Ian and Peter Fleming (who had recently married the film star Celia Johnson who was with him on the slopes) who were there too. Through Peter Waley was introduced to Maillart. Maillart would presumably have been aware of Waley’s translations and he aware of her travels in China.

It appears that after that meeting in Kitzbuhel Waley and Maillart did communicate by letter occasionally. They did also, it seems, meet once more, in the 1950s, when Waley was again in Switzerland and visited Maillart at her home in the Alpine village of Chandolin. A photograph of Waley leaning against her fireplace is mentioned (though appears to be lost).

I’d love to know what they talked about….

Waley on the slopes in Switzerland

Maillart with a parasol