Characters #01 - 彘

彘 zhì means pig or boar, and is rather obscure compared to the more commonly known synonyms 豬 zhū and 豕 shǐ. Broken down to its individual components, the character consists of the component 彑 jì pig nose (which also features in the characters 彙 huì, 彝 yí and 緣 yuán) and the phonetic radical 矢 shǐ squished in-between 比 bǐ. The character is intended to look like a pig.

The character features in a number of different words and contexts, most notably in the personal name of Emperor Wu of Han (劉彘), and in 人彘, the cruel form of torture invented by Empress Lü Zhi (呂雉) to punish Consort Qi after the death of Emperor Gaozu. Lü Zhi was reportedly so jealous of Gaozu's affection for Qi that she after his death not only blinded and deafened Consort Qi, but also cut her legs and arms down to stumps and removed her nose so that she would look like a pig. 

彘 is also used in the idiom 狗彘不如 gǒuzhìbùrú more despicable than a dog or a swine, which originates from the novel 飛龍全傳 "Complete Records of the Flying Dragon" by Qing-dynasty author Wu Xuan.