N EWS OF THE W EEK ARCHAEOLOGY bought (Science, 29 June 2001, p. 2418). In contrast, the early Shang characters concern Tortoise Pace for the Evolution only the king’s connection to ancestral and magical powers, similar to the earliest New Of Chinese Writing? World writing, which is linked to royalty and the sacred calendar (Science, 6 December Writing did not emerge in China until 2 mil- were simply local signs of ownership or clan 2002, p. 1872). Many of the Shang charac- lennia after it appeared in what is today or were precursors to later Chinese characters ters were found on tortoise shells just like southern Iraq, about 5200 years ago. But a found at the end of the Shang dynasty around those of Jiahu 4 millennia earlier, and there team of Chinese and U.S. researchers now 1200 B.C. Li’s team argues that those marks is evidence that tortoise shells were used as proposes that writing in China went through are indeed linked to characters and that the early as the Neolithic for divination. “This is a long, slow evolution that stretches back an Jiahu evidence pushes back astonishing 8000 years. They argue that their evolution substantially. etched marks found on tortoise shells in a “When all the scholarly Neolithic grave in Henan Province are the work is done, we will be earliest known precursors to what became able to trace the road map the system of characters—and that they for the development of writ- likely were used for shamanic purposes. ten language” in China, pre- That claim, made in the most recent issue dicts Harbottle. of Antiquity, has won media attention on the Nonsense, say others. BBC and U.S. network news, but so far it “There certainly is a long has earned mainly skepticism from many evolution,” says Murow- Western scholars. “There’s nothing new chick, “but there is no evi- here,” grumbles Robert Murowchick, a dence that these are the key Boston University archaeologist. He and links—it’s just too early to others dismiss the notion that these simple reach that conclusion.” geometric signs can be linked to early writ- William Boltz, a specialist ing. But the research is sure to fire up a in early Chinese writing at longstanding debate about how Chinese the University of Washing- Signs or lines? Tortoise shells found in graves bear markings that on March 12, 2012 writing evolved and whether religious prac- ton, Seattle, is also wary of may be the precursors of Chinese writing. tices spurred its origin. tying the Jiahu etchings to The team led by Xueqin Li, a senior ar- the Shang breakthrough. “The time scale is another reason why we can’t dismiss the chaeologist at the University of Science and just too great,” he says, and there’s no clear possibility that Chinese writing arose in a Technology in Hefei, drew on artifacts from a evidence that the Jiahu people were related context of divination,” says Boltz. The gene- site called Jiahu on the upper reaches of the to those of the Shang dynasty thousands of sis is particularly hard to pin down because Huai River between the Yellow and Yangzi years later. many scholars assume that there were earlier Rivers. Discovered in 1962 and partially exca- Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the writings—about unknown subjects—on per- vated in the 1980s, Jiahu has been radio- find, however, is why rather than how Chi- ishable material such as bamboo. www.sciencemag.org carbon-dated to the 7th to 6th millennia B.C. nese writing developed. In early Meso- More answers may lie in Jiahu, where by three Chinese laboratories. Along with potamia about 3200 B.C., scribes began to only a small fraction of the site has been dug. house foundations, cellars, pottery kilns, and a use tablets and a complex symbol system Says Harbottle: “We need more excavations, huge variety of animal bones, archaeologists solely for accounting purposes, such as and we need to find more early sites.” investigated 349 graves containing everything recording the number of sheep or goats –ANDREW LAWLER from an ancient seven-hole flute made from the bone of a crane to turquoise ornaments. SCIENCE PHILANTHROPY Downloaded from In two dozen of these graves, excavators also found tortoise shells, which in one Gates Grows UW’s Genome Program grave replaced the skull. Recently, archaeol- ogists visiting the warehouse where these It never hurts to have the world’s richest head of UW’s genome sciences department. objects are stored took note of their mark- person living down the street. Last week, The donation is the latest bit of good for- ings. Incised clearly on 14 of the shells were the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation tune for genome research in Seattle. Two nine signs, with an additional two on bone; awarded a $70 million grant to the Univer- years ago, the National Institutes of Health most date from 6600 B.C. to 6200 B.C. sity of Washington (UW), Seattle, to pro- awarded the university $30 million as part of Many of the marks are simple combina- mote genetics research. two national centers of excellence in ge- tions of lines, but the authors contend that The lion’s share of the money— nomics. And in January, the university lured some resemble early characters for “eye” $60 million—will help pay for a $150 million, Waterston, a prominent leader of the Human and for several Chinese numerals. “We don’t 265,000-square-foot (24,600-square-meter) Genome Project, away from Washington say they are language or words,” says co- building for the departments of genome sci- University in St. Louis, Missouri. author Garman Harbottle, a chemist at ences and bioengineering. The remaining Eric Green, the scientific director of the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, $10 million will support genomics projects National Human Genome Research Institute New York. “We do say these are signs.” He aimed at curing diseases rampant in develop- in Bethesda, Maryland, says the grant sig- sees the marks as the earliest evidence of “a ing countries. The new building should enable nals that “the University of Washington has long line of experimentation with sign use.” the university to add 14 new faculty members emerged as one of the premier genetics and Scholars have long debated whether marks and up to 400 graduate students and staff genomics programs” in the world. made on pottery beginning about 4500 B.C. CREDIT: INSTITUTE OF CULTURAL RELICS AND ARCHAEOLOGY OF HENAN PROVINCE CREDIT:AND RELICS INSTITUTE OF CULTURAL members, says geneticist Robert Waterston, –ROBERT F. SERVICE www.sciencemag.org SCIENCE VOL 300 2 MAY 2003 723.