Where the shape comes from
A tall building drawn from the front and read from the top down: the roof, then an upper storey with its window, then the gateway at street level. Height in stone became height of every kind — 高山 a high mountain, 高兴 in high spirits, 高中 upper secondary school, 高手 an expert. The same architectural picture stands behind 京 and 亭, and 高 lends its sound to 搞, 稿, 膏 and 蒿.