Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

PONDERA PONDERA. 931
tinle of the Emperor Claudius. (Gell. l. c.; Tacit. the historical times, and which contained four
Asnnal. xii. 23.) Dionysius (I. c.) states that down principal denominations, which, though different at
to his time nobody had extended the pomnoerium different times and places, and even at the salre
since the time of King Servius, although we know place for different substances, always bore the
from authentic sources that at least Augustus en- same relation to eec/s otlier. These were the Talent
larged the pomoerium (Bunsen, /. c. p. 139), and (-raAls7rov), which was the largest, then the 11ina
the same is said of Sulla and J. Caesar. (Tacit. (yva), the Drac!,nza (SpaX/le/), and the Obol
Annal. 1. c.; Gell. 1. c.; Fest. s. v. Prosienuerium; (ohXAds). The two latter terms are, in all proCic. ad Att. xiii. 20; Dion Cass. xliii. 50, xliv. 49.) bability, genuine Greek words, introduced for the
The last who extended the pomoerium of Rome purpose of making convenient subdivisions of the
was the Emperor Aurelian, after he had enlarged standard, apaXpA/ signifying a handful, and 3Co sdr
the walls of the city. (Fl. Vopisc. Div. Aurel. 21; being perhaps the same as oeAcds, and signifying
comp. Becker, Haendbuch der Roio.. Alterth. i. p. a small wedge of silver; so that these words again
92, &c.) [L. S.] fall under the description of genersic termns specifcelly
POMPA (7roet7ri), a solemn procession, as on applied.
the occasion of a funeral, triumph, &c. (Cic. pro These weights were related to one another as
3Ali. 13; Suet. Jul. Caes. 37, &c.) It is, how- follows: -
ever, more particularly applied to the granld pro- 1 Talent contained. - 60 Mllinae.
cession with which the games of the Circus com- 1 Alina,, - - 100 Dracl/zmae.
menced (Poimpa Circensis). [CIRCUS.] 1 Dracmas,, - - 6 Obols.
PONDERA (eTaOeeoli). The considerations.
which lie at the basis of the whole subject of Their relative values are exhibited more fully
weights and measures, both generally, and with in the following table:special reference to the ancient Greek and Roman Obol
systems, have already been mentioned in the introductory part of the article MENSURA. In the 6 Draclma
present article it is proposed to give a brief general
account of the Greek and Roman systems of' weights. 600 100
1. Early Greek eiglhts. - It has been already
stated, in the article MENSURA, that all the know- 36,000 6000 60 Talent.
ledge we have upon the subject goes to prove that,
il the Greek and Roiman metrical systems, weights 3. Derivatione of this System fra'on Babylonp.preceded 7measures; that the latter were derived Now, in this system, the unhellenic word /vs'a
fri'om the former; and both from a system which indicates, as already observed, tlze source fi'om
had prevailed, from a period of unknown antiquity, awhich the standard was derived. This word is
among the Chaldaeans at Babylon. This system undoubtedly of Semitic origin; and it seems to
was introduced into Greece, after the epoch of the belong mo'e especially to the Chaldee dialect, ill
Homeric poems; for, of the two chief denomina- which it signifies znumnb/er or measure in its widest
tions used in the Greek system, namely, ra'Xavrov sense, the proper word for weight being tekel or
(tcdeetuem) and l/Ya (7eina), Homer uses only the shekel.* (See Dan. v. 25, 26, where both words
former, which is a genuine Greek word, meaning occur). In Hlebrew it is used as a specific weight,
treight, the other being an Oriental word of the equal to 50 or 60 shekels t (1 Kings, x. 17; Ezra,
sasme meaning. (See Nummus, p. 810; where ii. 69; Nehem. vii. 71, 72; Ezek. xlv. 12). The
some things, which more Froperly belong to this word was also used in Egypt, in the sense of a
article, have been necessarily anticipated.) Homer fuid measucre and also of a wueight of' water-. (See
uses -axiavroev, like yi'rpov, in a specific sense (II. Bbckh, Aletrol. Untersuc/h. c. iv.) From an exxxiii. 260-270); and indeed in all languages the amination of several passages of the Greek writers,
earliest words used for weight are merely generic by the light of the etymological signification of the
ternis specifically applied; such are r-rXa-ror,, word /va, Buckh arrives at the following conclunlneeh (pv), librace, and our own poused, from sions, which, if not strictly demonstrated, are
pondus. IIence the introduction of the foreign established on as strong grounds as we can proword manedt (yia) by the side of the native word bably ever hope to obtain in so difficult a subject:
TdCLXYaro indicates the introduction of a new (1) that in the astronomical observations of the
standard of weight; which new standard soon Chaldees and Egyptians, time was measured by the
superseded the old; and then the old word rcdAar/- running out of the water through an orifice:revo was used as a denomination of weight in the (2) that the quantity of the water which so ran
new system, quite different from the weight which out was estimated both by measure and by weight:
it signified before. This last point is manifest - (4) that this mode of measuring time led nafrom the passages in Homer, in wh iclh the word is turaily to the dleternzination of a connected systeem
used in a specific sense, especially in the description both cof reights and 7seaesires, the unit of which was
of the funeral games (1. c.), where the order of the the izane1l (Ipai), which originally signified a dlefiprizes proves that the talent must have been a very site qulantity of water, determinzedl either i/y weight or
much smaller weight than the later talent of 60 eaceasure, and was afterwards used especially in the
minae, or about 82 pounds avoirdupois; and traces sense of a defisnite weiglht: (5) that this system
of this ancient small talent are still found at a very passed from Assyria to Phoenicia, and thence to
much later period. Thus we arire at the first
position in the subject, that the Greek systet qof * The t and sih are merely dialect variations.
wezlht swaspost-Hioneric. t Wihich is the true value is doubtful. Perhaps
2. Tlhe Greek System inz the Ul-istorical Period. the two values were used at different places, ac-Of course, by the Greek system here is meant cording as the duodecimal or decimal system pre.
the system which prevailed throughout Greece in vailed.
30 2