In her view, the project represents an upgrade in the way oracle bone heritage is presented. She says that where the museum once developed products in a piecemeal way — a character here, a motif there — the new framework delivers a coherent narrative that can support entire product lines. "You could develop multiple products across multiple categories, all telling one story."
The four threads
Ma Yang, who led the oracle bone IP project, faced a creative challenge of condensing an entire civilization into a visual language that could resonate with both Chinese and international audiences. Her team settled on four narrative threads: Jin (Bronze), Shi (Jade), Yi (City), and Wen (Writing), representing the material culture, ritual system, urban life, and written legacy of Shang civilization.
"Oracle bone script is the starting point, but it was never just about writing," Ma says. "It was embedded in a larger civilizational context — bronze ritual vessels, jade ceremonial objects, planned cities, and specialized crafts. We wanted to show that bigger story."
Bronze is rendered in patina greens and earthy browns — colors that speak to the weight and solemnity of ritual vessels, the cauldrons and wine containers through which Shang elites communicated with the spirit world. Jade appears in softer, aquatic tones, befitting the refinement of carvings that embodied status and spiritual aspiration. The City thread glows with warm hues depicting golden fields, bustling workshops, and chariots in motion — a thriving metropolis of artisans, farmers, and merchants. Writing, finally, uses warm reds and fiery oranges, capturing the flame of divination and the urgency of scribes preserving royal words for posterity.
At the heart of the project is the design philosophy of "characters as images, images as characters", Ma says.
Oracle bone script is inherently pictographic, and the designers "re-embedded" it in the IP design. A door-shaped character becomes a city gate and a horse-shaped glyph becomes a chariot, while a bird-shaped mark becomes a jade phoenix gliding over a river.
"We wanted the characters to grow into the picture, not just sit on top of it," Ma says. "A viewer first sees a vibrant scene of Shang life. Then, on closer inspection, they realize every building, vessel and figure is derived from an oracle bone character. The scene itself becomes the script made visible."
Each of the four threads carries a thematic title. Qiming (Enlightenment) stands for Bronze, speaking to the "awakening" of a complex civilization. Shangli (Revering Ritual) reflects the central role of ritual through the use of Jade. Shounian (Harvest Year), drawn from an oracle bone inscription, expands beyond agriculture to symbolize prosperity and social stability through the City. Yongxu (Eternity) represents Writing and the unbroken continuity of cultural memory.
"We could have just used decorative patterns," Ma says. "But that would have been superficial. Every visual choice had to be rooted in something authentic — a real character, a real ritual, a real slice of Shang life."
Zhao from the Yinxu Museum says it is a bold effort to bring cultural heritage to life. "It pursues accuracy of spirit rather than accuracy of form."
Throughout the creative process, she adds, the museum provided academic review to ensure that while artistic interpretation was encouraged, historical authenticity was never compromised.
Beyond museum glass
The Yinxu Museum already offers more than 1,200 cultural products, ranging from oracle bone-shaped noodles to jade-inspired headbands, using creative merchandise to deepen visitors' connection with Shang civilization. Among its unexpected bestsellers is a refrigerator magnet featuring a Shang child, affectionately nicknamed the "Young Prince" by museum staff members.
For Li Xiaoyang, director of the Anyang cultural heritage bureau, these individual products, however popular, are only the beginning."The problem is that each initiative stands alone," Li says.
He points to a series of experiments over the years, including oracle bone-themed calisthenics, emoji packs and design competitions.
"We've done many things, but they were mostly isolated efforts — a character here, a movement there — without a unifying framework."
Li sees the newly launched IP as part of a broader effort to "present the most authentic picture of the Shang Dynasty possible".
He highlights a historical fact that even many Chinese are unaware of:"Many people think ritual traditions began with the Zhou Dynasty (c.11th century-256 BC). In fact, Zhou rituals grew out of Shang rituals."
"This is precisely the kind of historical insight international audiences might find eye-opening," he says.
The oracle bone roots IP, in Li's view, represents a significant step forward. "China Daily has done something truly innovative with these four IP designs," he says. "They have captured the essence of Shang civilization through four distinct visual narratives. This is far more than a series of posters — it is a complete storytelling system."
He says the approach will resonate more strongly with international audiences and young people alike. Meanwhile, he stresses the importance of encouraging creativity and commercialization while guarding against what he calls "cultural distortion".
Anyang has seen other sites struggle with this balance — too much regulation stifles innovation, too little can lead to vulgarization. "The goal is to let the river flow, but to keep the banks strong," Li says.
His vision is a unified cultural experience: visitors arrive at Anyang to discover Shang civilization at Yinxu, then move through time to see how the script evolved at the National Museum of Chinese Writing, then onward to other sites that complete the city's "cultural profile".
Telling the world
The oracle bone IP project was conceived from the outset with global audiences in mind.
"Oracle bone script is inherently visual," Ma says. "Even if you can't read it, you can see it — the shape of a bird, the curve of a river, the form of a vessel. That visual language crosses cultural boundaries easily."
What is more difficult to convey, she admits, is the semantic depth — the ritual context, the divination logic, and the layered meanings of a single character.
Shounian, for instance, literally means "harvest year", but in the original divination text, it carried overtones of royal legitimacy, social stability, and ancestral blessing, far more than a simple agricultural forecast.
The IP addresses that challenge by using imagery to spark curiosity, and guides audiences through layered explanations in short captions, interactive content, and deeper readings for those who want to explore further.
Organizers of the project concur that it has made a serious start toward bringing ancient writing fully into the modern world, by turning characters into images, images into products, and products into points of connection between past and present.
