Amphŏra
（
ἀμφορεύς). A two-handled, big-bellied vessel, usually of
clay, with a longish or shortish neck, and a mouth proportioned to the size, sometimes resting
firmly on a foot, but often ending in a blunt point, so that in the store-room it had to lean
against the wall or be sunk in sand, and, when brought out for use, to be put in a basket,
wine-cooler, or hollow stand.
It served to keep oil, honey, and more especially the wine drawn off from
the big fermenting vats. It was fastened with a clay stopper, plastered over with pitch, loam,
or gypsum, and had a ticket stating the kind, the year, and the quantity of the wine it
contained. The Greek
ἀμφορεύς was a
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Amphorae.
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large liquid measure holding nearly nine gallons (see
Metretes); the Roman measure called
amphora held six
gallons and seven pints. See
Vinum.
