New Chinese bridge features ancient wine vessel

A new motorway bridge in Henan province in China is being built with the central support in the shape of an ancient wine vessel.

The new and as yet unopened bridge near Henan province’s capital, Zhengzhou, is dominated by an enormous, 104-metre-tall, central pillar based on ancient wine vessels dating to the Shang (1600-1046BC) and Zhou (1046-256BC) dynasties, which were based in the area.

The Zhou dynasty, which was split between the Western and Eastern Zhou, was the longest-lived of all the Chinese dynasties and its collapse led to the Warring States period out of which grew the famous Qin dynasty led by China’s ‘founder’, Qin Shi Huang

This particular type of wine vessel, known as a jiǎ (斝) (pictured below), was made in both pottery and bronze forms. It was an especially prominent vessel during the Shang and Zhou dynasties when it was principally made in bronze and was a ritual vessel for pouring wine libations in ancestor worship.

The vessels begin to become less common after the decline of the Western Zhou in 771BC.

As reported by shanghaiist.com, the bridge is 210 metres long and cost over 100 million yuan (US$15m) although how much of that was spent on the wine cup is unclear.