Ancient Chinese Calligraphy
The study of ancient Chinese calligraphy is a very complex study that is rich in Chinesehistory. The earliest variant of Chinese calligraphy is referred to as Oracle Bone Script. Oracle Bone Script is the art of inscribing characters or symbols into Oracle Bones. Oracle bones are small animal bones or turtle shells used in during the Bronze Age in China for divination. The earliest form of Oracle Bone Script dates back to the Shang dynasty. It was during this time period that symbols began to be standardized. The Oracle Bone Script is the direct ancestry of modern Chinese writing.
In its infancy, Oracle Bone Script writing was overly simple pictographs. Most of the symbols were very linear. This linear style of writing was due to the difficulty of inscribing circular or round shapes into bone. As pottery and bronze became more prevalent toward the middle and late period of the Shang dynasty, the symbols began to evolve. The evolution began with the writing of symbols onto pottery with brush and ink. As the use of bronze became popular, symbols were carved into wet clay. Once this clay was cured, it was used as bronze casting. |
