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Roman dry and liquid measures, from the soldier’s sextarius to the ship’s amphora. Part of the Ancient Measures collection.
Every unit converts through liters: sextarius = 0.546 L, congius = 6 sextarii, modius = 16 sextarii, amphora = 8 congii. Worked example: the monthly grain dole (frumentatio) of 5 modii = 5 × 8.73 = 43.7 L of wheat per citizen. Surviving bronze sextarii cluster at 0.53–0.57 L; the table uses the scholarly standard of 0.546 L.
About 8.73 L (roughly a quarter of a US bushel). It was Rome’s standard grain measure — and the ‘bushel’ under which Christ says not to hide a lamp (Matt 5:15).
Both a jar and a measure: 48 sextarii, about 26.2 L. As a cargo unit it rated ships — a 10,000-amphora vessel was a very large merchantman.
8 sextarii, about 3.27 L. The name survives in congiarium: the emperor’s gift of oil or wine to the Roman people, handed out by the jarful.
Roman Length Roman Weight Greek Volume Jewish Volume Russian Volume