When fingertips trace the surface of a bone that has survived thousands of years, a window through time gradually opens.

Scenes of ancient hunts and faded memories of domestication, long eroded by the years, flicker into view, with stories emerging from the cracks of bones.

To preserve and study these fragile witnesses to history, the Chinese Animal Resources Specimen Repository was established last year.

The repository was highlighted at a recent news conference in Beijing, as a major technological milestone achieved by researchers at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

According to Lyu Peng, a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology under the academy, the repository houses more than 100,000 specimens of ancient and living animals in China. It includes ancient bone specimens of animals from 121 sites in 26 provinces across the country, spanning from the Neolithic period to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

It also has more than 1,000 specimens of living animals with significant research and collection value.

Each specimen is cataloged in meticulous detail. Records note where it was excavated, its estimated age, the archaeologists involved, and references to related academic research, says Lyu.