Grocer’s Scale

A fully handmade scale used by an itinerant greengrocer, made of forged iron. The weighing apparatus consists of a large circular tray for collecting produce, a suspension system with chains and metal hooks, and the main measuring arm (kantari), fitted with a sliding counterweight. Balance is achieved through the familiar principle of the lever scale: the weight of the goods on the tray is counterbalanced by moving the counterweight along the graduated arm.
Ανήκε στο μικρό μπακάλικο του Γεώργιου Νουβέλογλου, στην περιοχή Τροχονόμου της αγοράς Νέας Ιωνίας, ένα κατάστημα μόλις 10 τ.μ. που εξυπηρετούσε την καθημερινότητα των προσφυγικών οικογενειών.
This is a characteristic tool of itinerant small traders in the first decades of the 20th century. It belonged to Konstantinos Tsobanidis, a refugee from Alaya, who settled in Nea Ionia in the early years and worked as a greengrocer in the streets and neighbourhoods of the area.

Kindly made available for photography by Stathis Nouveloglou.