A new cultural institution showcasing the history of Chinese characters and books has made its debut in Beijing. The China Book Culture Exhibition Hall aims to show how this vital source of human knowledge has evolved.

Historical records show that China's earliest books date back to the Shang Dynasty, in 1700 B.C.

The forerunner to compiling complete books was the emergence of characters. Before characters Chinese ancestors used knots to mark their daily affairs. Eventually, they began to inscribe numbers and characters on slices of bamboo or wood.

China's earliest books were made of thin strips of bamboo linked together with threads. The technique can be traced to the Warring States Period, about 2,400 years ago. The ancient method was used by subsequent dynasties for more than 1,700 years. Some of these ancient books are now housed in the Shanghai Museum.

In today's society, it is important for people to pay attention to copyrights. The world's earliest copyright statement was inscribed on a book titled "Affairs of Eastern Capital" dating back to the southern Song Dynasty, about 900 years ago.

The publication of books relies on typography. Ancient Chinese invented two methods of printing -- engraving and typing.

China's earliest engraving book was made during the Tang Dynasty, in the year 868.

Books with color were first produced in China during the Ming Dynasty, about 600 years ago.

The exhibition puts on display many of these historical documents, as well as the electronic reading material of today.