Yi (vessel)

Yi
Chinese
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin
Wade–Gilesi2
Middle Chinese
Middle Chinese*laj
An yi in the collections of the Shanghai Museum.

A yi is a kind of ancient Chinese ritual bronzes in the shape of a half gourd with a handle (often in the shape of a dragon), usually supported by four legs. It is believed that it was used to contain water for washing hands before rituals like sacrifices.

References

  • http://arts.cultural-china.com/en/30Arts2067.html (unsafe URL)
  • http://arts.cultural-china.com/en/30Arts2015.html (unsafe URL) Archived 2011-10-06 at the Wayback Machine