¼ Zhu Yishaozhu

The *yishaozhu* denomination is among the least understood in the Warring States bronze coinage system — the term *shao* indicating a fractional unit whose precise exchange relationship to the standard *zhu* weight remains debated among specialists. Chu coinage operated largely outside the bronze spade and knife currency systems favored by northern states, instead issuing cast cowrie-form and disc coins that circulated across a distinct southern monetary zone encompassing much of the Yangtze basin.