Roman Balance or Steelyard

This is a Roman Balance and is possibly 100 years old and represents history in a very basic way. Thought to have been invented thousands of years ago it is now generally recognised as a significant  development attributed to the Roman era, as the name suggests. It is also known as a 'Steelyard' or Steelyard Balance'.
 
It is a straight beam balance with arms of unequal length and uses a counterweight which is moved along the serrations on the longer beam to counterbalance the load. This gives a consistent indication of the load hung onto the hook. 
 
It is a decorative item for your home, that actually works. It is made from hand beaten iron and is painted black. It is ideal to demonstrate the principles of equilibrium and be the subject of discussion to help explain basic physics particularly to children.
 
Overall and approximately, the balance measures 45 cm and weighs 1.6 kg. 
 
Incidentally, the items shown hanging from the balance are not included. They are just to give you ideas.