Amazing Chinese Characters (742）Deed - 契

The big seal script of character Deed is

The top

is character 㓞 (Pinyin Qi4), which means "engrave text on wood". The character is not used long time ago, most dictionaries don't collect it but still exist in many compound characters.

The bottom is character Big (Post 76), meaning a big man who is trustable, and responsible person.

People negotiate each other, make agreement, then engrave the agreement on the wood as a document both will follow. It is similar to deed in modern times.

The small seals script of character Deed is

Similar to big seal script.

The clerical script of character Deed is

Similar to old scripts.

Pinyin of the character is Qi4.

Amazing Chinese Characters (741) Thirty - 卅

The bronze script of character Thirty is

One rope has three ends, each has a big knot. As we learnt in the previous posts, one knot means ten, therefore the character means thirty. It is ancient Chinese to count and record the number.

The big seal script of character Thirty is

Similar to bronze script.

The small seal script of character Thirty is

There are three crosses, each cross means a knot. There are three separate ropes, which is different from the old scripts in which all knots linked on the same rope. 

The clerical script of character Thirty is

Changed a lot, it looks like all knots on one straight rope without any branch. 

The Pinyin of the character is Sa4.

Amazing Chinese Characters (740) Twenty - 廿

The shell bone script of character Twenty is

A role folded to two lines, one line represents Ten (Post 739), two lines represent twenty. 

The bronze script of character Twenty is

One bent rope has two knots, one  represents ten, so total is twenty.

The big seal script of character Twenty is

The two knots are replaced by a horizontal line.

The small seal script of character Twenty is

Similar to its big seal script.

The clerical script of character Twenty is

Similar to big and small seal scripts.

The Pinyin of the character Twenty is Nian4.

Amazing Chinese Characters (739）Ten - 十

The shell bone script of character Ten is

which is a vertical line, very confusing.

The bronze script of character Ten is

There is a big dot in the middle of the vertical line, which is a rope knot to represent Ten. We then know that the shell bone script above is a rope. Probably a rope represents Ten in very early time, later on, people use a knot in rope to represent Ten.

Before any character was created, ancient Chinese used knotting on rope to record the quality, amount, and number they got. In most documents, people believe that ancient Chinese used knotting to record what happened. I don't believe because it is impossible to represent the time, the place where the event happened, and what happened by knotting on rope. But it is easy to record the number by knotting.

The small seal script of Character Ten is

The big dot in bronze script horizontal line is replaced by a horizontal line, which is unique feature of small seal script: all dots are replaced by short line, either horizontal or vertical.

The clerical script of character Ten is

Similar to its small seal script.

The Pinyin of the character Ten is Shi2.

Pictography of characters Moon and Evening

Amazing Chinese Characters (738）Disaster - 祸

The bronze script of character Disaster is

The left is character Display (Post 329), the right is character Skeleton (Post 736). The character Display is an omen in divination. If it is a skeleton, the future or the result of upcoming action would be disaster.

The big seal script of character Disaster is 

Similar to bronze script, the left is character Display, the right is character Skeleton.

The small seal script of character Disaster is

The left is similar to old scripts, the right is similar to bronze script.

The clerical script of character Disaster is

The left is Radical Display, the right is similar to small seal script.

The Pinyin of the character is Huo4. 

Many dictionary or translation app translate the character to be misfortune. It is true, the character has the meaning of misfortune, but misfortune may be only unlucky, not disaster. The character has disaster, much worse than misfortune. 

Amazing Chinese Characters (737）Cut-fresh-from-bone - 剐（剮）

The shell bone script of character Cut-fresh-from-bone is

Same as the shell bone of character Skeleton (Post 736）. I think that the above is a bone after all fresh was cut off, implying the Cut-fresh-from-bone.

The big seal script of character Cut-fresh-from-bone is

The top left is bone, the bottom is character Mouth, here it means the tube of the bone, the right is character Knife (Post 61), which is used to cut the fresh off the bone. 

The small seal script of character Cut-fresh-from-bone is

The left is character Skeleton - 呙，the right is character Knife.

The clerical script of character Cut-fresh-from-bone is

Simplified song typeface of the character is

The left top inside is empty, the bottom changed from 口 to 人, two strokes less, but really unnecessary.

The Pinyin of the character is Gua3.