yí
匜
ancient ritual washing vessel
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesnoun
ancient bronze vessel for pouring water during hand-washing ceremonies; gourd-shaped ritual ladle
archaicRefers to a specific type of ritual bronze vessel (青铜器) used in ancient China, particularly during the Zhou and Spring-Autumn periods. It typically features a spout (流) for pouring water and a handle (鋬), used together with a basin (盘) for ceremonial hand washing.
Kǎo考
gǔ古
xué学
jiā家
zài在
mù墓
zàng葬
zhōng中
fā发
xiàn现
le了
yī一
jiàn件
xī西
zhōu周
de的
qīng青
tóng铜
yí匜
。
Archaeologists discovered a Western Zhou bronze yi-vessel in the tomb.
Gǔ古
dài代
guì贵
zú族
jǔ举
xíng行
wò沃
guàn盥
zhī之
lǐ礼
shí时
，
shì侍
zhě者
yòng用
yí匜
jiāo浇
shuǐ水
，
yǐ以
pán盘
chéng承
jiē接
。
When ancient nobles performed the ritual hand-washing ceremony, attendants used a yi to pour water while catching it in a basin.
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Zhè这
jiàn件
yí匜
de的
zào造
xíng型
yōu优
měi美
，
liú流
kǒu口
xiū修
cháng长
，
pàn鋬
shàng上
shì饰
yǒu有
lóng龙
wén纹
。
This yi has an elegant shape with a long, slender spout and a handle decorated with dragon patterns.