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

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

References

edit
  • 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
edit