Merchant-Issued Hansatsu and the Silver-Weight Economy of Edo-Period Japan

This publication documents a merchant-issued hansatsu denominated in silver from late Edo-period Japan. Bearing the handwritten inscription gin ichi monme nari (“silver, one monme”), the note exemplifies decentralized monetary practices that supplemented scarce official coinage. Woodblock-printed on handmade paper and incorporating symbolic iconography, including a tiger motif, the hansatsu functioned within trust-based regional commercial networks. This object provides material evidence for Japan’s silver-weight economy and the role of merchant authority prior to national monetary unification.