Jaroslav Průšek

[1] He trained as an historian, with an interest in the history of ancient Greece, Byzantium and Roman Empire at Charles University.

After graduating from Charles University, he went to Germany and Sweden and became the student of Bernard Karlgren.

He was sent to China and Japan in the 1930s, where he became friends with many Chinese intellectuals, including Lu Xun.

[3][4] In 1952, he was appointed head of Institute of East Asian Studies of Charles University.

He lived in what Leo Ou-fan Lee called "the era of giants.