Which ancient Chinese script used pictographic forms on Shang-dynasty oracle bones?

Oracle bone script was the ancient Chinese script used on Shang-dynasty oracle bones.

The script was inscribed mainly on animal bones and turtle shells used for divination. Diviners recorded questions, rituals, and sometimes the results of heat cracks produced during ceremonies. The inscriptions provide direct evidence for an early stage in the history of Chinese writing and are particularly important for studying the late Shang kingdom.

Many signs are pictographic or structurally recognizable ancestors of later Chinese characters, but the script was not simply a picture language. It included sound-related components and increasingly established conventions for arranging and forming characters. Some signs remain difficult to interpret, while others can be connected to modern forms.

Oracle bone script is distinct from seal script, clerical script, and regular script, which developed later. The best-known discoveries came from the ruins at Anyang, traditionally identified with the last Shang capital, Yin.