Bronze Nesting Cup Weights
Eight pieces:
(a) Seven bronze nesting apothecary cup weights
(b) Bronze case
This is a complete graduated set with original container. Bronze case with hinged lid, and inside are seven different sized weights that of decreasing size placed one inside another.
The nested cup weights were designed to make the transport of weights, essential items in most commercial transactions, more convenient. The idea of nesting weights, which dates back to Roman times, was to increase the portability of weight sets by compacting an entire group of weights into a container. In the nested cup form, a series of weights shaped into cups are set one into the other, forming a stack which is stored within a house vessel. Each of the cups fit precisely into the next, larger sized cup, which each larger example weighing exactly twice that of the one previous. Furthermore, the weight of the house was made to equal the total weight of the cup stack. In this manner, systems of weights were created that allowed for precise and flexible measurements, and could be contained within organized conveyable units.
Details
Details
Inside lid: "PER.CO.E"
Set of 20th Century Bronze nesting cup apothecary weights are traditionally used for measuring powders and ingredients in pharmacies and apothecaries. They are typically cast in solid bronze and designed to fit neatly inside one another, reflecting their historical use in trade. These weights often measure in Troy ounces and are characterized by their graduated sizes, usually including weights of 16, 8, 4, 2, 1, and 0.5 ounces.
In the nested cup form, a series of weights shaped into cups are set one into the other, forming a stack which is stored within a house vessel. Each of the cups fit precisely into the next, larger sized cup, which each larger example weighing exactly twice that of the one previous. Furthermore the weight of the house was made to equal the total weight of the cup stack.
Other items from Busselton Historical Society
-
Boy Scouts - 4th Asia-Pacific Jamboree 1979
-
Tool - Line Pin
-
Tool - Steel Chisel
-
Tool - Pointing Trowel
-
Ladies Brass Cigarette Case - Austro Hungarian
-
Morse Code Apparatus No.0
-
Pencil Sketch - by Prinsep (1924)
-
Program - Driving of a Pile in new Busselton Jetty
-
Rocking Horse (red stand)
-
Needlework - Tracing Wheel
-
Multiple Crochet Hook
-
Needlework - Stitching Awl
