The distribution of Mandarin ziji, just like that of many other anaphors, is complicated by logophoricity: ziji need not be locally bound (as predicted by Condition A) when it sits in a clause expressing the perspective of its antecedent. It is therefore necessary to disentangle logophoric from non-logophoric instances of ziji to determine its binding requirements. The goal of this paper is to do so by examining inanimate ziji, thus challenging the common assumption that ziji cannot be inanimate. It is experimentally shown that inanimate ziji is acceptable when locally bound. As inanimates cannot be logophoric since they lack a mental state, the behavior of inanimate ziji can thus be investigated for examining the binding properties of ziji independently of logophoricity. The distribution of inanimate ziji revealed by our experimental study supports a Chomskian definition of Condition A and shows that subcommand is an artifact of logophoricity, while subject orientation is independent of it.