34 MEMOIRS OF THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM 
Fig, 15. Fig. 16. Fie. 17. 
le 
g ‘ea, 
qa te 
a 
ow" 
— 
é 
ahea\ 
Figs. 15-17. Inscribed tortoise-shell fragments. (Actual size. ) 
That these are pictures, even the most skeptical observer will admit. Their pre- 
cise significance is hard to determine. Some of these pictographs occur more than 
once, but often without sufficient context to warrant a conclusion as to meaning. 
I suspect that some signs like g kiie, tq t'ien, # ki, 4» hsin, % nii, '¥ shih, # ching, 
have astrologic significance, being names of stars and constellations. 
Enquiries for divination seem to have been made concerning parents, sons, 
daughters, animals, crops, and utensils. One inscription seems to read ff] 7 & 
3 
“Ask selection of Prime Minister.” Should this prove correct it suggests consulta- 
tion of the oracle by royalty. A Chinese scholar mentions a tradition that the 
Fia. 18. Fig. 19. Fig. 20. 
a 
Figs. 18-20. Fragments with certain striking symbols, e. g., % (a curious coincidence in form with our modern 
dollar-sign). Here it is #, (fu) ‘‘not.’? Occurs also as & we, H, (Actual size. ) 
(The originals of Figs. 15-18 are in the Couling-Chalfant collection. Figs. 19 and 20 are in the Bergen collection. 
