George W. Bush on
Takashima, Ken-ichi
on cracking oracle bones
on origins of Chinese writing
on work of Chen Mengjia
“talent markets” (employment centers)
Taliban and Islamic terrorists
Tang dynasty (618--917 A.D.)
Tang Jigen (archaeologist)
taotie design
Tarim Basin
movie set in
mummies discovered in
tea
incorporation of, into Chinese culture
writing about
television, introduction of, into rural Sichuan province (1980s)
Tenet, George (CIA director)
terra-cotta figures, Shaanxi province archaeological sites
terrorism
Chinese government’s attempt to link Uighurs with
Taiwanese S. Chen on
U.S. statement on Uighur ETIM movement and
terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001
Chinese public opinion on, (2001)
official Chinese response to
Polat and
videos and DVDs of
Thatcher, Margaret (British prime minister)
Thomas, Dylan
Three Gorges Dam
Tiananmen Square, Beijing
Falun Gong demonstrations at
tenth-anniversary commemoration of 1989 protests in
Tian Zhicheng (museum curator)
Tibet and Tibetans
Tien, Wilson (Taiwan political leader)
tools, Luoyang spades
The Touch (film)
tourism in China
Americans, at Falun Gong demonstration
“The Travels of Old Derelict” (Lao Can Youji)
A Truthful Impression of the Country (Clifford)
Tsinghua University
George W. Bush speech at
“Twelve Months of Migrant Labor” (song)
Tyson, Mike (athlete)
Uighurs (ethic group)
American political conservatives as allies of
attitudes of, toward Islam
Chinese government policy toward
culture and history of
expatriate community of, in U.S.
independence movement
international views of
ostensible connections to Taliban and Osama bin Laden
political asylum for
protests conducted by
Senator Jesse Helms, as ally of
status as Chinese ethnic group
U.S. policy toward
United States
aircraft-collision incident with China
author on, after 9/11 terrorist attacks
Chinese perceptions of
counterfeit documents to enter
I. Galambos on importance of movies to culture of
Justice Department
NATO bombing of Chinese embassy in Belgrade and
terrorist attacks (see terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001)
Uzbekistan
videos and DVDs of 9/11 terrorist attacks
villages, abandoned Chinese
Voice of America (VOA)
Special English broadcasts on
Uighur broadcasts on
Wall Street Journal (newspaper)
author’s employment at Beijing bureau
reports on Falun Gong in
Wal-Mart
Wang, Xiansheng (Chinese executive)
Wang Delu (peasant amateur archaeologist)
Wang Erxiao (peasant hero)
“Wang Erxiao” (song)
Wang Guowei (oracle bones scholar)
Wang Jun (linguistic scholar), author’s interview with, regarding reform of Chinese writing system, and his criticism of poet Yuan Xiaoyuan
Wang Shimin (Chen Mengjia’s student)
Wang Shuo (writer)
Wang Wei (Chinese military pilot)
Wang Xueqi (actor)
Wang Yirong (oracle bones collector)
Wang Zhi, legend about immortals and
Warriors of Heaven and Earth (film), author’s visit to movie set
Washington, D.C.
Polat’s life in
Watergate scandal
Web sales of Chinese characters
weida (great)
Wenzhou, Zhejiang province
Western history and civilization
hero concept in China and in
idea of sports and athletic competition in
Latin language in
white supremacists
Whitman, Walt, Lucy Chao’s translations of
Wilson, James Harrison
women, suicide rate among Chinese
World Economic Forum
World Trade Organization (WTO)
writing. See Chinese written language
Wu Ding (Shang king)
Wu Ming (protester)
Wu Ningkun (writer)
on Chen Mengjia
life and career of
on Lucy Chao
A Single Tear (book)
wushu martial arts
Wuwei, Gansu province, bronze horses discovered at
Wu Zetian (Tang empress)
Xia dynasty (ca. 2205--1766 B.C.)
Xi’an, Shaanxi province
archaeology and artifacts of
Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology Project
Xinhua news agency
Xinjiang province
Jiang Wen movie set in
mummies discovered in Tarim Basin of
terrorism threat and Chinese government policy in
Uighurs in
Xituogu village, Great Wall at
elections in
Xu, Xiansheng (economic development executive)
xuanchuan, publicity and propaganda
Xu Chaolong (scholar), on Sanxingdui civilization
Xu Jicheng (athlete, TV announcer)
Xu Wenqiu (Sichuan peasant)
Yale romanization system of Chinese
Yalu River Broken Bridge
Yang Jun (Nanjing worker)
Yang Shulin “Driver Yang” (Beijing cab driver)
author’s search for Beijing Olympic Games sites and
Yangtze River civilizations
Yangtze Valley Authority
Yang Xizhang (Old Yang)
on life and work of Chen Mengjia
Yellow River Valley, Chinese civilization and
Yin Binyong (linguistic scholar), author’s interview with, regarding reform of Chinese writing system
Yongle (Ming emperor)
You Can’t Control My Life (Miao Yong)
Yuan dynasty (1279--1368)
Yuan Shikai (president of Chinese republic)
Yuan Xiaoyuan (poet), Wang Jun’s criticism of
Yugoslavia, 1990s war in
Yunnan province
Zero Distance (Wenzhou television program)
Zhang Lianzhong (education official), on Chinese government’s plan for English-language education
Zhang Xuexian (Anyang landowner)
Zhang Yimou (film director)
Zhao, Edward C. T.
Zhao Baohong (peasant tourguide)
Zhao Jingxin (Old Mr. Zhao)
on Chen Mengjia
destruction of Beijing courtyard house belonging to
family history
Ming dynasty furniture belonging to Chen Mengjia and Lucy Chao, and role of
sister Lucy Chao
Zhao Wei (actor)
Zhejiang province, economic development in
Zhou dynasty (1122--256 B.C.)
bronzes of
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Fengmin (Xituogu village voter)
Zhou Youguang (linguistic scholar)
author’s interview with, regarding reform of Chinese writing system
Zhuhai, Guangdong province
Zhu Jiqiu
Zhu Rongji
Zhu Yunfeng (Emily’s boyfriend)
Zhu Zonghan (Beiji
ng Sanitation Bureau)
Zuo Tongtang (Qing general)
About the Author
PETER HESSLER is the Beijing correspondent for The New Yorker and a contributor to National Geographic. He is the author of River Town.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.
ALSO BY PETER HESSLER
River Town
Credits
Jacket design by Roberto de Vicq de Cumptich
Jacket photograph © ChinaFotoPress
Map courtesy of Angela Hessler. “Outline of Ancient Chinese History” courtesy of Nanjing University Press. Illustrations courtesy of Ho Wei. Oracle bone rubbings on pages 136 and 250 are reproduced from David N. Keightley’s Sources of Shang History.
Copyright
ORACLE BONES. Copyright © 2006 by Peter Hessler. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part oAll rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
HarperCollins e-books™ and the HarperCollins e-books™ logo are trademarks of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
EPub © Edition APRIL 2006 ISBN: 9780061834127
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hessler, Peter.
Oracle bones : a journey between China’s past and present / Peter Hessler.
p. cm.
ISBN-13: 978-0-06-082658-1
ISBN-10: 0-06-082658-4
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Dedication
Contents
Author’s Note
Map
Part One
Artifact A
Chapter 1
Artifact B
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Artifact C
Chapter 4
Part Two
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Artifact D
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Artifact E
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Part Three
Artifact F
Chapter 12
Artifact G
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Artifact H
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Artifact I
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Part Four
Chapter 20
Artifact J
Chapter 21
Artifact K
Chapter 22
Artifact L
Chapter 23
Artifact Z
Chapter 24
Sources
Acknowledgments
Searchable Terms
About the Author
Other Books by Peter Hessler
Credits
Copyright
About the Publisher