170 Chinese Clay Figures 



horns, but display most elegant shapes of soft, rounded outlines, such as 

 could have been carved only from rhinoceros-horn. Moreover, these 

 horn vessels were differentiated according to their capacities: the vessel 

 kio (No. 2218) containing one pint (sheng); the vessel ku (No. 6221), 

 two pints ; the vessel chi (No. 1925), three pints ; l the vessel kio (' ' horn ' ') , 

 four pints; 2 the vessel kung or kuang (No. 6393), seven pints. All of 

 these served the same purpose, — they were filled with wine; and the 

 ancient tradition is that the bad or tardy disciple, or whoever had 

 violated a rule or lost a game, was forced to empty the horn at a draught 

 by way of punishment. 3 Now, there could be no greater absurdity than 

 to suppose that these drinking-horns were veritable ox-horns, whether 

 from a wild or domesticated ox, and were emptied at a draught by those 

 wretched fellows. Every former German student knows from experi- 

 ence that an ox-horn contains such a volume of liquor, that even the 

 strongest drinker in the world could not empty it at a draught; and every 

 one who has lived among the Chinese is acquainted with those tiny bits 

 of porcelain cups from which they enjoy their hot rice-wine during 

 meals, and knows how limited their abilities in Baccho are. The 

 punishment of forcing a negligent student to do away with a quantity 

 of wine contained in a buffalo-horn would certainly have been most 

 efficient in killing him instantly and saving further trouble about him; 

 that, however, was not the intention of the law-giver. Naturally, 

 these drinking-cups of early antiquity were nothing but miniature cups 

 carved from rhinoceros-horn. Indeed, it is the very horn of the rhino- 

 ceros, which renders this cup eligible as a fit means of correction, for " the 

 horn of the rhinoceros is terrible to its enemies ; and for this reason the 

 holy emperors of old, in condemning a man to empty a cup by way of 

 punishment, wanted it to be made from rhinoceros-horn." 4 The 

 terror which the animal was able to inspire in man should be brought 

 home to the mind of the culprit, and this was the essential point of his 

 punishment. Similar was the idea when the rhinoceros-horn cup was 

 emptied on the occasion of a vow; as in the case of the three lords who 

 pledged fidelity to the King of Tsin, with imprecations of calamities to 



1 According to Shuo win (Ch. 1 1 , p. 4) , four pints ; while the vessel shang (No. 9744) 

 held three pints. 



2 Compare the dictionary Kuang ya by Chang I, written in the first part of the 

 third century (Ch. 8, p. 5 b; edition of Han Wei ts'ung shu). 



3 Compare Biot, Chou li, Vol. I, p. 259; Vol. II, p. 17. In one passage of the Li ki 

 (ed. Couvreur, Vol. II, p. 618), horns (together with kia) appear as sacrificial cups, 

 from which to pour out libations to the ancestors. 



4 According to Yiin hui, as quoted by A. Tschepe (Histoire du royaume de Tsin, 

 p. 308, Shanghai, 1910). 



