[aristeides]

I thought the earliest Chinese characters known were those on the Shang oracle bones, from about 1500 BC. I would appreciate information on earlier writings.

[jimtorr]

"" inscriptions on animal bones and tortoise shells discovered in the famous Yin Ruins, which date back to over 3,000 years.""

Hmmm, you may be right. On re-reading the relevant section of the article, I noticed that I mis-read the sentence above. I was thinking 3,000 BC, not 3,000 years ago.