About Ryo...
Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 9:41 -0700
What exactly is the currency used in UY? It looks like little slabs of wood or metal with little grooves etched in them. What were they made of?
The "ryo" was a gold coin, also called a "ban". Ten ryo equalled one "oban". The oban was not in common use, but was for more ceremonial or political use. I guess it's kind of like the $1,000 bill in the US.
There were also smaller coins used. The "zeni" was the smallest, and made of copper. It had a hole in the middle, and could be strung together. Another small coin was the "bu".
Coins were made of gold, silver, copper, or iron. Edo based its economy on gold coinage, but Osaka and Kyoto used silver.