Researchers have for the first time created a 3-D-printed replica of a Chinese oracle bone. The print is an exact copy of a 3,000-year-old ox bone, complete with inscriptions of the earliest-known example of Chinese writing.
Using technology more commonly associated with orthopedic surgical procedures, Cambridge University researchers scanned and printed the bone in 3-D to avoid damaging or mishandling the original artifact. They can now examine the replica bone in more detail to get a better insight into life of ancient China.
The Cambridge University Library houses a collection of 614 Chinese oracle bones. Dating back to 1339-1112 B.C., these artifacts are thought to represent the oldest known documents written in the Chinese language. Scribbled on ox shoulder blades and the flat under-part of turtles, oracle bones offer a record of questions posed to the divination at the court of the royal house of Shang, which ruled north central China at the time.
It follows then that these inscriptions provide a rare glimpse of many aspects of early Chinese society, including warfare, agriculture, hunting, medical problems, meteorology and astronomy. In fact, among the writings is a record of a lunar eclipse dated to 1192 B.C. - one of the earliest such accounts in any civilization.
"Some of the bones have already been included in the Cambridge Digital Library, but now new technology provides readers around the world an even closer look at these precious artifacts," said Charles Aylmer, head of the Chinese Department at Cambridge University Library. "In what is believed to be a world first, one of the bones (which features in the 600th anniversary exhibition Lines of Thought) has been digitized in 3D thanks to the work of archaeologist Professor Dominic Powlesland, one of the leading pioneers in this area."
Measuring about 9-by-14 centimeters, the high-resolution image of the oracle bone can be analyzed from 1.3 million different angles, allowing for a seamless view of its entire surface. It is constructed of 350 superimposed layers of a fine powdered plaster compound hardened with cyanoacrylate or superglue.
Cambridge UL Oracle Bone CUL.52 Hi Res by Professor Dominic Powlesland on Sketchfab
"The oracle bones are three-dimensional objects, and high-resolution 3D imagery reveals features which not only all previous methods of reproduction (such as drawings, rubbings and photographs) have been unable to do, but which are not even apparent from careful examination of the actual items themselves," Aylmer added. "To hold a 3D print of an oracle bone is a very special experience, as it provides the same sensory impression as that obtained by the people who created them over three thousand years ago, but without the risk of harm to the priceless originals."
The print not only brings into sharp focus the inscriptions on the obverse of the bone but also the divination pits engraved on the reverse side and scorch marks caused by the application of heat to create the cracks - interpreted as the answers from the spirit world.
"In particular, the reverse sides of the bones, which are crucial to understanding the process of divination but have hitherto been neglected because of the difficulty of representing them adequately, can now be studied in detail thanks to this new technique," Aylmer concluded.
In the future, researchers hope to print more 3-D replicas of bones from the library's collection.
