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Steelyard
(Roman Empire )
Steelyards, or scales, were used in the Roman and Byzantine Empires for weighing heavy objects in the marketplace. They are, in fact, still in use today. The steelyard (named for its more recent function of weighing steel in England) consists of a balance beam divided into two arms of unequal length, with suspension hooks or a pan to hold the object being weighed.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Don Marcello Massarenti Collection, Rome [no. 130]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1902, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Measurements
27 15/16 x 3 1/8 x 1 3/16 in. (71 x 8 x 3 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters with the Massarenti Collection, 1902
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
54.197