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Veteran Chinese archaeologist Liu Yiman /Daozhonghua
Oracle bone inscriptions, or Jiaguwen, are widely regarded as the oldest-known, fully-developed form of Chinese writing, and the ancestors of the Chinese characters still used today.
A fragment of an oracle bone /Daozhonghua
First discovered in 1899 at the Yin Ruins, the remnants of the over 3,000-year-old city of Yin, which was the former capital of the late Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC) in Anyang City, central China's Henan Province, these enigmatic inscriptions carved on tortoise shells and animal bones were added to the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2017.
Chinese archaeologist Liu Yiman at work /Daozhonghua
And one important reason for this UNESCO acknowledgement, according to veteran Chinese archaeologist Liu Yiman, is that China's Jiaguwen did not become extinct over the course of history, but instead evolved into the modern Chinese characters that still survive thousands of years later, unlike many other famous ancient writing systems from antiquity, such as the cuneiforms of ancient Babylon and the Mayan glyphs from Mesoamerica.
A copy of an oracle bone inscription made by Chinese archaeologist Liu Yiman /Daozhonghua
Liu, who has been involved in two of China's three major oracle bone inscription discoveries, regards the unearthing of these ancient scripts as a curtain-raiser for Chinese academic institutions to conduct more archaeological excavations.
A fragment of an oracle bone /CFP
The reputed archaeologist also stressed that research into oracle bone inscriptions has significantly contributed to the study and exploration of the Yin Ruins and the Shang Dynasty, which has seen researchers from across the globe devote their time and efforts into decoding these hidden messages from an ancient Chinese civilization.
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Disinformation report hotline: 010-85061466