The Shang Dynasty Oracle Oracle Bone Script (jiaguwen) Special Exhibition is open to the public for free at Chongqing China Three Gorges Museum (Picture provided by the sponsor)

CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- Oracle bone script may be mysterious to many people. Now, you have a chance to get close to it. According to Chongqing China Three Gorges Museum, from January 15 to April 5, “Huanshui: Shang Dynasty Oracle Bone Script Special Exhibition” will be held in Hall B on the second floor of the museum and is free to the public.

Oracle bone script refer to the script inscribed on the bones of tortoiseshelds and beasts, most of which are now from Xiaotun Village in Anyang, Henan Province, namely the Yinxu area. The script in Yinxu is the relics of the Shang royal family and nobles in the late Shang Dynasty (14th - 11th century BC). According to the statistics, the number of them has reached about 160,000 pieces. According to their nature, the oracle bone script in Yinxu can be roughly divided into oracle script, narrative script, bibliographic script, and custom script, whose main body is oracle script, that is, divination records.

The oracle bone script in the ruins of Yin were extremely rich in contents, including astronomy, calendar, meteorology, geography, country, lineage, family, people, official, war, prison, agriculture, animal husbandry, hunting, traffic, disease, childbirth, disaster and so on. It is an extremely precious first-hand data for the study of ancient Chinese history, especially the history and culture of Shang Dynasty. As the earliest written system visible in China, oracle bone script is not only a symbol of civilization and culture, but also confirms the authenticity of a series of documents and books.

At present, the National Library of China has the largest collection of oracle bones in China and even in the world, with over 35,000 pieces of oracle bones, most of which are treasures of large size, clear lettering and strong representation. The Chongqing China Three Gorges Museum has a collection of more than 200 pieces of bones and oracles, among which there are some excellent ones. The exhibition is a collection of more than 70 pieces of oracle bones from the two museums, supplemented by bronze ware, books and other physical exhibits to form a narrative chain, telling the discovery, excavation and research process of oracle bones over the past hundred years, and revisit the civilization of Shang Dynasty behind the oracle bones. (Translated by Luo Juan, Fathom Language Limited)