Ant-nose Money 'Ghost face' type, without upper line

Ant-nose money — named by Western collectors for the vague facial resemblance of the incuse markings — functioned as the primary small-denomination currency of the Chu state across the middle and late Warring States period. Chu was unusual among the major states in rejecting the spade and knife coin forms favored elsewhere, instead issuing these small cast bronzes in a form that may derive from cowrie shell currency. The "ghost face" designation distinguishes this specific character configuration; the absence of the upper line marks it as a distinct casting variant, not a worn example of the lined type.