from the 3rd century onwards, chinese methods of geographical study and writing of geographical literature became much more comprehensive than what was found in europe at the time (until the 13th century). chinese geographers such as liu an, pei xiu, jia dan, shen kuo, fan chengda, zhou daguan, and xu xiake wrote important treatises, yet by the 17th century advanced ideas and methods of western-style geography were adopted in china.