Steelyard Weight

The cast bronze weight in the form of a bust of an empress is filled with lead. The empress is dressed in a himation and has a diadem on her head. Her right hand holds the edge of the himation and in her left is a scroll. Steelyard weights constituted an important place in the trade relations of Roman and Byzantine periods. Such weights were produced either with depictive figures or in plain forms (spherical, pear or bell-shaped). Steelyard weights in the forms of busts or figures were cast in bronze with the melted beeswax technique and were inlaid with lead. The earliest steelyard weights with depictions dated to Roman times feature busts of gods and goddesses such as Minerva (Athena), Isis, Jupiter (Zeus), Mars (Ares), and, in particular, Mercurius (Hermes) for his connection with commerce. The Byzantine examples, on the other hand, commonly reveal representations of emperors, empresses, as well as depictions of Minerva (Athena). The penchant for depictions of gods, goddesses, and emperors in steelyard weights was possibly to assure the customer that an honest and fair transaction was being made.