The first person in my country to discover oracle bone inscriptions was Wang Yirong. Wang Yirong, whose courtesy name is Zhengru and whose alias is Liansheng, is originally from Yunnan and a native of Guxian Village, Fushan County, Shandong Province. He is upright by nature and is known as the "Eastern Monster". Modern Chinese epigrapher, connoisseur and calligrapher. Wang Yirong was extensively involved in calligraphy and history, and was fond of epigraphy and stone. He wrote "The Preservation of Stones in Han Dynasty", "Selection of Ancient Springs", "The Preservation of Stones in the Southern and Northern Dynasties", "Fushan Epigraphy and Stone Chronicles", etc. He has close exchanges with connoisseurs and scholars such as Weng Tong_, Xu_, Pan Zuyin, Wu Da_, Luo Zhenyu, Liu E, etc.
Discovering oracle bone inscriptions
In the 25th year of Guangxu (1899), when I was taking medicine in Heniantang because of my proficiency in medical skills, I bought a medicinal material called dragon bone. After studying the graphic characters and purchasing them in large quantities through Shandong antique merchant Fan Weiqing, Wang Yirong discovered oracle bone inscriptions for the first time and dated them to the Shang Dynasty. The discovery caused a sensation in Chinese and foreign academic circles, pushed the history of Chinese characters to the Yin and Shang era of more than 1,700 BC, and became the founder of the study of oracle bone inscriptions.
Wang Yirong entered the South Study Room, and his calligraphy was deeply appreciated by Cixi. When Cixi was painting, she ordered Xu _, Lu Runxiang, Li Wentian, Wang Yirong and others to write inscriptions. Cixi once rewarded Wang with a beautifully carved jade pipe, which is now in the Yantai Museum.
Academic Impact
Wang Yirong was the first person to discover, collect and study oracle bone inscriptions. Internationally, he discovered the "dragon bone" inscription in 1899 as the starting year of oracle bone inscriptions research. Wang Yirong's initial judgment on the oracle bone inscriptions was confirmed by subsequent research. Wang Yirong has an in-depth study of ancient Chinese cultural relics. Through his hands, the Yin Ruins oracle bone inscriptions have been transformed from "dragon bones" into precious ancient cultural research materials, avoiding the bad luck of being continued to be used as "medicinal materials" and being destroyed. Wang Yirong made an indelible contribution to the protection and promotion of my country's ancient cultural heritage and the establishment of oracle bone science.