What’s this thing (air gap?) in my hotel’s bathroom?

I found this thing in my hotel bathroom, above the sink; looks like an air gap of some sort, but for what purpose?

Also, if I were to make an air gap with "discrete" components at least I'd make the top pipe go a bit lower into the "cone", to avoid risking throwing too much water around. Why is it made like this?


#Bathroom #Pipe #Plumbing