Explanation of the Term cuo shu 蔖疋  on Strip No. 1 of the Yangtianhu 仰天湖  Bamboo Manuscript

There have been different explanations of the text written on strip no. 1 of the Chu bamboo slips excavated from Yangtianhu 仰天湖, Changsha 長沙, Hunan. Based on a newly published Warring States private seal inscription containing a two-word first name as well as the ancient habit of using loan graphs, this article suggests that the expression cuo shu 疋 in the bamboo manuscript should be read as cuo ju 蔖苴, meaning “shoe insoles made of straw.”