铜雕麒麟原型的形状多数文献倾向于麋身，牛尾，马蹄，一角，角端有肉，黄色。这种造型是将许多实有动物肢解后的新合拼体，它把那些备受人们珍爱的动物所具备的优点全部集中在铜雕麒麟这一幻想中的神兽身上。前文介绍的在广西贺州市出土的战国麒麟尊体形像鹿，头顶有一支角，角端圆润，长有马蹄，体肥四肢短小盘骨俱健，通体饰“夔”纹，十分华丽。它为我们展现出古人理解并刻划出的早期铜雕麒麟形象。其背盘附一条龙，尾上刻附着一只凤，凤昂头踮脚，注视着前面的龙，这件距今 2500 多年前的铸铜麒麟尊，是商周青铜文化的余韵，是西南百越文化与中原文化融合的产物，带有明显的地方特色。印度犀牛当时生活在黄河中下游一带，在上古是确实存在的动物。商周时，由于气候变得干旱寒冷和人类生产对环境的破坏，影响了印度犀牛居住的生态环境，这种动物就渐渐稀少了，麒麟的原型符合犀牛的特征。另一种说法认为麒麟是古代传说中的灵物，实际上并不存在。第三种就是认为铜雕麒麟是鹿科动物——长颈鹿，来自非洲。麒麟选择以鹿为原型是因为鹿是一种温驯、敏捷的动物，不但与人无害，反而对人有益。

The shape of most of the literature on the tendency of bronze kylin prototype moose, oxtail, horseshoe, corner, corner meat, yellow. This style is a lot of real new combination of animal body dismembered, it is those people cherish animal have all the advantages of the focus on the bronze kylin this illusion of animal body. Introduced in Guangxi city of Hezhou unearthed the Warring States kylin statue body image of deer, head has a corner, corner round, long horseshoe, fat body and short limbs pelvis are healthy, the decoration "Kui" pattern, very beautiful. It shows us the ancient understanding and early Bronze kylin image carved. The back wheel of a dragon tail moment attached a Phoenix, phoenix head on tiptoe, watching the front of the dragon, the bronze statue of kylin dating back more than 2500 years ago, is the bronze culture of Shang and Zhou flavor, is southwest of Baiyue and the Central Plains culture and the integration of the product, with obvious local characteristics. The rhinoceros of India lived in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River at that time. In the ancient times, it was a real animal. During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, due to the climate becoming arid and cold, and the destruction of the environment caused by human production, the ecological environment of India rhinoceros lived. Another way of saying that kylin is the ancient Chinese legend of the fetish, in fact does not exist. The third is that the bronze kylin is deer animal -- giraffe, from africa. Kylin choose to deer for the prototype is because deer is a gentle, agile animal, and not only harmless, but on the good.