The Legend of Yan Shang: Film Review - Research Paper Example

Customs, religions and festivities such as birthdays, baptisms, burials and other significant events of the ancient times has been written on these things. The Yan Shang dynasty was once believed by scholars that it did not exist, but due to inscription on the bones and shell it became real and part of the Chinese history. According to Kwo Da Wei (9), the inscription was written first by brush and ink then incised by knife later on. Vermillion, a kind of mineral was used as an ink using a small brush.

The inscriptions were written in vertical form, from top to bottom. Bones or scapulas used in writing inscription are pig and sheep as the most frequent, followed by deer scapulas or bones which are used rarely and most rarely used is the turtle shell (Keithly 12). These bones with inscriptions in the Yan Shang dynasty are known or called oracle bones. Based on the inscriptions, Shang people had begun to change their form of writing from ancient picture words to more stylized and abstract. To date only one third of the inscription has been translated into modern Chinese (Kwo Da Wei 9-10) Due to Oracle bones, people in the Yan Shan dynasty were discovered to be superstitious and known to be relying on ancestors and spirits for making decisions in hunting, farming, astronomical phenomena and important divination records during that time.

Questions of people in Shang dynasty were found in the oracle bones, they would often submit or asked questions regarding important matters in their ancestors and deities for guidance. Their beliefs, practices, detailed day to day lives are written or inscripted in these bones that gave the scholars and historians an idea and overview of the way of life during ancient times. They discovered through these bones that the people at that time were advance, the farmers had a very primitive way of farming and specialized works were present during that time such as silk making and making ornaments using bronze.

They also discovered that the ruler of the Yan Shang dynasty had two roles; king and priest. Oracle bones indeed gave light to Chinese people about the lost dynasty that was once considered as a legend, mythical and does not exist actually did and gave a link to their long list of history. Works Cited Kwo D. W. Chinese Brushwork in Calligraphy and Painting: Its History, Aesthetics, and Techniques. Courier Dover Publications. (1990). Print. Keightly D.N. Sources of Shang History:  The Oracle-Bone Inscriptions of Bronze Age China.

University of California Press. (1985). Print. Stranthon M., Hyma A. Streams of Civilization: Earliest Times to the Discovery of the New World. Christian University Press. (2000).