5 Zhu 'Western Han' type, with small Wu

The "small Wu" variety emerged during the reign of Emperor Xuan, who came to the throne in 74 BC after the abrupt deposition of the mentally unstable Liu He — emperor for only 27 days. Xuan's administration undertook careful monetary reforms, and subtle die variations like the reduced first character of the denomination inscription served as practical controls on output across multiple provincial mints operating simultaneously.

Hartill distinguishes this variety by the compressed upper stroke of the Wu character, a feature consistent enough across surviving examples to suggest deliberate instruction rather than engraver drift.