Her book manuscript “Precious Economies: Gems and Value-Making in the Pakistan-Afghanistan Borderlands” examines the colored stone trade in and from northwest Pakistan and its adjacent regions, exploring the links between imperialism, mining, artisanship, geosciences, and contemporary supply chains. At stake in her research is the rethinking of the relation between value and imperial legacies, and ideas of quality and authenticity in the Global North that have come to shape the market for precious minerals.
Ping-hsiu’s research is supported by grants from the Wenner-Gren Foundation , EHESS, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Dissertation