Ancient Scale Weight – Roman, Byzantine, or Islamic - c. 200 to 1000 CE - Ancient Middle East

Note: Some of these weights contain lead, which was a common additive during ancient and medieval times. These copper, brass, and leaded-copper scale weights date back to the 3rd to 10th century, and originate from the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East. Weights like these played a crucial role in ancient commerce, allowing people to measure out precise quantities of goods. They also played an administrative role in tax collection and the creation of currency, as coins needed to be struck with a consistent weight. Scale weights were sometimes decorated with lettering, geometric patterns, and religious imagery, though only faint etchings remain on the weights in this group. The modern day pound in the Imperial system actually descends from the Roman pound (or litra), though the vast size of the empire meant that the measurement system of the Romans was not quite as precise as modern day systems. A Roman pound was split into twelve ounces or 72 solidi, the standard weight of a gold co