Unciae Sentence Examples

Hence we see that it probably passed from the East through Greece to Etruria, and thence became the standard foot of Rome; there, though divided by the Italian duodecimal system into 12 unciae, it always maintained its original 16 digits, which are found marked on some of the foot-measures.

It is usually the case that a unit lasts later in trade than in coinage; and the prominence of this standard in Italy may show how it is that this mina (18 unciae = 7400) was known as the "Italic" in the days of Galen and Dioscorides (2).

The same passed into Italy and Corfu (44), averaging 6000 -- divided in Italy into unciae (1/12), and scripulae (1/288) and called litra (in Corfu?).

A duck-weight of Camirus, probably early, gives 8480; the same passed on to Greece and Italy (17), averaging 8610; but in Italy it was divided, like all other units, into unciae and scripulae (44).

By the Romans it was used on the Danube (18), two weights of the first legion there showing 8610; and this is the mina of 20 unciae (8400) named by Roman writers.

In Spain it was 236 to 216 in different series (17), and it is a question whether the Massiliote drachmae of 58-55 are not Phoenician rather than Phocaic. In Italy this mina became naturalized, and formed the "Italic mina" of Hero, Priscian, &c.; also its double, the mina of 26 unciae or 10,800, = 50 shekels of 216; the average of 42 weights gives 5390 (=215.6), and it was divided both into 100 drachmae, and also in the Italic mode of 12 unciae and 288 scripulae (44).

It is believed that this mina divided by 12 unciae by the Romans is the origin of the Arabic ratl of 12 ukiyas, or 5500 grains (33), which is said to have been sent by Harun al-Rashid to Charlemagne, and so to have originated the French monetary pound of 5666 grains.

Then the "Alexandrian mina" of Dioscorides and Galen (2) is 20 unciae = 8250; in the "Analecta" (2) it is 150 or 158 drachmae = 8100.

It also passed into Italy, but in a smaller multiple of 35 drachmae, or 1/4th of the Greek mina; 12 Italian weights (44) bearing value marks (which cannot therefore be differently attributed) show a libra of 2400 or 1/4th of 9600, which was divided in unciae and sextulae, and the full-sized mina is known as the 24 uncia mina, or talent of 120 librae of Vitruvius and Isidore (18) = 9900.

This unit passed also into Italy, the libra of Picenum and the double of the Etrurian and Sicilian libra (17); it was there divided in unciae and scripulae (44), the mean of 6 from Italy and Sicily being 6600; one weight (bought in Smyrna) has the name "Leitra" on it.

The Romans commonly used fractions with denominator 12; these were described as unciae (ounces), being twelfths of the as (pound).