Wang Yirong

Wang Yirong
王懿榮
Born	1845 Yantai, Shandong, Qing dynasty
Died	August 1900 (aged 54–55) Beijing, Qing dynasty
Cause of death	Suicide during the occupation of Beijing
Nationality	Chinese
Occupation(s)	Administrator of education, archaeologist, epigrapher
Title	Director of the Academy
Academic work
Discipline	Archaeology, epigraphy
Sub-discipline	Palaeography, oracle bone script
Institutions	The Guozijian

Wang Yirong (Chinese: 王懿榮; pinyin: Wáng Yìróng; 1845–1900) was a director of the Chinese Imperial Academy, best known as the first to recognize that the symbols inscribed on oracle bones were an early form of Chinese writing.^[1] His work on the oracle bone script was curtailed when he accepted a local command during the Boxer Rebellion, despite his belief that the cause was futile. When an international force occupied Beijing in August 1900, Wang committed suicide, together with his wife and daughter-in-law.^[2] A museum devoted to Wang is located in his birthplace of Yantai, Shandong.^[3]

References

• Tu, Lien-chê (1943). "Wang I-jung" . In Hummel, Arthur W. Sr. (ed.). Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing Period. Vol. 2. United States Government Printing Office. pp. 826–828.