Gui
Shang dynasty, Anyang period (13th -- 12th century BC)
Height: 15.5 cm, Diameter: 25 cmGui are ritual vessels used for holding rice. This example is decorated with extremely fine taotie motifs -- highly stylised motifs with deep spiritual meaning. They represent the fierce-looking masks of divine animals, notably cows or goats.
Ding and gui are always used together in banquets and sacrificial rituals, with the ding in odd numbers and the gui in even numbers.