A current shunt is just a low value resistor that has been optimized for measuring high currents.
They usually have 4 terminals. Since they typically have a very low resistance, there will be an error depending on where on the resistor body that the measurement is made. Building it with separate connection points for power and measurement will reduce this error. They are usually individually calibrated by cutting a notch or grinding away material on the side of the resistive element.
Shunts are usually rated by the voltage they produce at a given current. I have one that is marked 50mV/50Amp. This tells you that there will be 50 millivolts across the measurement terminals when there is 50 Amps flowing through the power terminals. Ohms law tells us that this is 1 milliohm.