Bronze Zun in the shape of a boar

Shang dynasty, 16th - 11th century B.C.
Hunan Provincial Museum, Changsha

This zun, a wine vessel, is fashioned like a boar - the only one of that shape that has been found so far. The handle of the vessel's lid is amusingly formed into a bird, a common motif (compare the birds resting on tortoises in Lady Dai's Banner). The holes in the boar's forequarters and hindquarters are for the insertion of carrying ropes.