The “Treatise on Food and Money” derives from the Han Shu (literally, “Book of Han”), the standard history of the Former/Western Han Dynasty (206 BCE–9 CE), compiled by historians of the succeeding dynasty, namely the Later/Eastern Han Dynasty (25–220 CE). The attribution of the Han Shu is generally to Ban Gu (32–92 CE), a famous writer of his time who was born into a prestigious literary family. In fact, the compilation of the Han Shu was a collaborative project initiated by Ban Gu’s father, continued by Ban Gu himself, and finished by his younger sister. The Han Shu is the most detailed extant account of the Former Han dynasty.