What did Chinese characters look like more than 3,000 years ago? An ongoing exhibition at the National Museum of Classic Books in Beijing has piqued public interest in oracle bone inscriptions, the earliest known form of Chinese writing.
First discovered in Yinxu, the ruins of the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 B.C.) in Anyang, Henan Province, the script was carved into cattle scapulas and tortoise shells in the process of divination. As such, the surviving inscriptions provide a record of many aspects of Shang life, including sacrifices, weather and military affairs.
The oracle bone script is among the world's best known historical writing systems, together with the hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt and Mayan glyphs of Mesoamerica. It is also the oldest writing system that still survives, as it has evolved over millennia into the Chinese characters currently in use.
In 2017, oracle bone inscriptions were added to the UNESCO Memory of the World Register, which lists the world's most valuable documentary heritage.
(Photos by Wei Yao)
