What did the Shang Dynasty writing look like?
The Shang people wrote on the bones of oxen (an animal, like a cow) and turtle shells.
The characters are similar to modern Chinese.
It is the oldest form of writing found from China’s history.
Important words
Important words on writing in the Shang dynasty.
| Keyword | Definition |
|---|---|
| Historian | A person that studies history. |
| Oracle bones | Animal bones covered in ancient writing. |
| Ox | An animal, like a cow. The plural of ox is 'oxen'. |
Watch: Oracle bones
Watch the video to learn more about oracle bones.
Narrator: One of the most exciting objects or artefacts we have from the Shang Dynasty are oracle bones. They are animal bones covered in ancient writing and were used to try to predict the future.
The King would call on a priest to help him talk to the gods.
King: The crops are dry, is the rain coming today?
Narrator: The priest would carve the question, ‘Will it rain today?’ into the oracle bone.
He would then heat it with a hot poker until it cracked. The priest would then try to interpret the cracks in the oracle bone and tell the king what he thought the gods were saying.
Priest: The gods say the rain will come today.
Narrator: We don’t know how often the priests got it right. Oracle bones are a primary source which means they are from the time of the Shang Dynasty.
Today, by knowing what questions the priests asked the gods, we can understand a lot about people’s lives and what was important to them.
What were oracle bones?
The oracle bone below was found in China over 100 years ago.
Historians (people that study history) realised that there are questions written on the bones.
Oracle bones like this one are about 3500 years old.
Click through the interactive to learn more about oracle bones.
What do we know about oracle bones?
The writing on the oracle bones is the first form of Chinese writing.
They tell us about the Shang dynasty rulers, the weather, battles, farming, births and deaths.
Oracle bones are made from ox bone and turtle shell.
They were scraped and smoothed to make them easy to write on.
The Shang kings and priests (the diviners) would ask questions to the gods, by carving them on the bones.
A hot metal rod was then applied to the bone (or shell) to heat it until it cracked.
When this happened, the diviners used this to work out the answer to their questions.
They would write the answers on the back of the bone (or shell).
Why have oracle bones been helpful to historians?
Oracle bones tell historians when people in China started to write.
They reveal parts of the Shang dynasty’s religion and how they communicated with their gods.
They were first discovered in Yinxu, Anyang around a century (100 years) ago.
They have been found in large numbers in the old Shang capital city of Yin.
The bones tell us about the Shang dynasty rulers, the weather, warfare, agriculture, births and deaths.
They even tell us what was causing a royal toothache!
Think like a historian
Have a look at the thinking points below and think about your answer to each question. You could even write them down on a piece of paper or discuss them with somebody else if you want to.
Why is it useful to historians to be able to read ancient writing?
How do oracle bones show the importance of religion?
Objects can tell us about the equipment people had in the past and how they may have used them. Objects from ancient religions can also give us some ideas about what people believed and writing gives us more detail as to what people thought and what they believed shaped the world around them.
The king and diviners (priests) asked the gods and their ancestors questions, therefore they respected their answers as important.
Activities
Activity 1: Shang writing
Click through the interactive to learn more about writing in the Shang dynasty.
Activity 2: Oracle bones quiz
Grown-ups corner
Are you a parent, carer or teacher?
Take a look at some of the links below on KS2 History which are packed full of knowledge, videos, quizzes and activities.
History KS2: The Story of China - The Rise and Fall of the Shang
BBC Bitesize for Teachers
History KS2: The Story of China - How the Shang Invented Writing
BBC Bitesize for Teachers
History KS2: The Story of China - How We Know About the Shang
BBC Bitesize for Teachers
Horrible Histories: Raid and Trade game! game
Play Horrible Histories: Raid and Trade KS2 History
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