| This dissertation takes as its central focus the newest discovery of writing from the commencement of China's historical period. The Huayuanzhuang East oracle bone inscriptions, discovered in 1991 and published in six folio volumes in 2003, are a synchronically compact and unified corpus of 2452 individual divination accounts inscribed on 529 (345 completely intact) turtle shells and bovine scapulae that were produced during the late Shang period (ca. 1250-1045) under the patronage of a prince of the royal family. The records stand as one of the most important epigraphic finds in the history of Chinese archaeology. Due to the limited corpus of non-royal oracle bones dating to the earliest phase of the Chinese written language, our understanding of Shang civilization remains partial and incomplete. What the field of Shang studies has needed for quite some time is more discoveries of complete oracle bone inscriptions that reveal information about a broader dimension of Shang civilization.;Chapter 1 presents the core information of the discovery: the pit and its contents, codicology, the nature and importance of the inscriptions, working with synchronies, and periodization. I conclude with a review of the major studies and summarize objectives of the dissertation.;Chapter 2 introduces and discusses the people. I make two critical determinations. The first is that the protagonist, a person who as a rule was referred to by his diviners and scribes only as "our lord" was the son of the king, Wu Ding, and one of his main consorts, Lady Hao. I identify him with a person seen in concurrent royal inscriptions called "Rong." The second is a new explanation that the name "Ding," the most powerful figure in the inscriptions and the prince's father, is a non-royal appellation for the living king and means "our Highness." I conclude with an overview of the rest of the prince's family and key members of his entourage.;Chapter 3 argues in favor of seeing oracle scribes as China's first collective group of writers. I dispel the notion that they are mere copyists or simple engravers by illustrating their creative application of graphic design layouts. I construct a tiered methodology to extract identity by focusing on the features of the script, orientation, and other scribal habits.;Appendix 1 is a complete, annotated translation of the inscriptions. Each divination account is presented in an easy-to-read three line format: the first line is in oracle bone font transcription, the second line is in modern Chinese transcription, and the third line is the English translation. Annotations at the bottom of each page abound with copious notes, references and a plethora of new readings. This is the first attempt anywhere to translate the entire corpus. |
