TĂLENTUM

( τάλαντον ) meant originally a balance [ Libra ], then the substance weighed, and lastly and commonly a certain weight, the talent . The Greek system of money, as well as the Roman [ As ], was founded on a reference to weight. A certain weight of silver among the Greeks, as of copper among the Romans, was used as a representative of a value, which was originally and generally that of the metal itself. The talent therefore and its divisions are denominations of money as well as of weight. The Greek system of weights contained four principal denominations, which, though different in different times and places, and even at the same place for different substances, always bore the same relation to each other . These were the talent ( τάλαντον ), which was the largest, then the mina ( μνᾶ ), the drachma ( δραχμή ), and the obolus ( ὀβολός ). [See Tables .] The Attic and Aeginetan were the two standards of money most in use in Greece. The Attic mina was 4 l. 1 s. 3 d. , and the talent 243 l. 15 s. The Aeginetan mina was 5 l. 14 s. 7 d. , and the talent 343 l. 15 s. The Euboic talent was of nearly the same weight as the Attic. A much smaller talent was in use for gold. It was equal to six Attic drachmae, or about ¾ oz. and 71 grs. It was called the gold talent , or the Sicilian talent , from its being much used by the Greeks of Italy and Sicily. This is the talent always meant when the word occurs in Homer. This small talent explains the use of the term great talent ( magnum talentum ), which we find in Latin authors, for the silver Attic talent was great in comparison with this. But the use of the word by the Romans is altogether very inexact. Where talents are mentioned in the cla ical writers without any specification of the standard, we must generally understand the Attic.