Abstract
Of the more than 2,500 bone ssu (ritual spatulas) unearthed in Yin-hsu, Anyang county, Honan province, 498 contain decorative designs. The decorative designs are fixed in style and highly complex in pattern. During the Shang dynasty decorative motifs were for the most part of real animals and insects, such as tigers, buffalo, deer, snakes, birds, fish, cicadas, etc., and of intricate and varied mythological animals, including animal faces such as that of the t'ao-t'ie (a legendary ferocious animal) and dragons. This paper identifies 13 major motifs and 113 different decorative marks. The decorations on bone ssu can be divided into three zones. The first has several combinations of motifs, which are combined with decorative designs, according to two other zones, to produce highly complex combinations. Most of these decorative designs are only found on this bone ssu, giving them a special Shang dynasty style of decorative art. Moreover, and examination of the technique employed in the production and carving of these bone ssu, indicates that they could be adapted to deep carving and turquoise inlay techniques, and were of the same artistic and stylistic level as Shang dynasty bronze vessels and stone carvings.
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