Wang Lingtao, a sculptor in Jinan, Shandong province, has created pottery cups in shape of lotus leaves, which helps vitalize the city"s traditional folk culture – drinking wine through lotus leaves.

Wang Lingtao presents his lotus-leaf-shaped cups.

In ancient Jinan, people would puncture a hole in the center of lotus leaves, exposing the hollow lotus stems. The wine would then be sipped from the lotus leaf, through the lotus stem.

Wang started to restore lotus-leaf-shaped cups three years ago. On the shelves at his workshop are many different versions of pottery lotus-leaf-shaped cups.

A series of lotus-leaf-shaped cups are on display at Wang"s workshop.

The body and the handle of the cup are shaped like lotus leaves. The outside straw is shaped like a lotus leaf petiole, and the bottom of the cup is shaped like koi fish, golden toads, and crabs. From kneading mud, making the clay plate, and shaping to airing the glaze, the whole process takes half a month, Wang said.

（閃電新聞）