I Arzamas

ARZAMAS, (I) a district, (2) a town in the Nizhegorod province of the R.S.F.S.R. The district has an area of 8,040 sq.km. Pop. (1926) 350,964: urban, 18,535, i.e., the town of Arzamas, rural 33 2,429. The town, 22' N., 43° 5o' E., is at the confluence of the rivers Tesha and Arsha and is also a rail way junction. It is thus a centre for local products, with cold storage facilities. Its chief occupation is timber-milling, with tanneries, tallow and soap works and flour mills. It trades in sheepskins, sailcloth and the products of koustar (home) indus tries, especially knitted goods.

AS,

the Roman unit of weight and measure, divided into 12 unciae (whence both "ounce" and "inch") ; its fractions being deunx dextans , dodrans a, bes , septunx A-, semis , quincunx -A, triens quadrans , sextans sescuncia k, uncia A. As really denoted any integer or whole ; whence the English word "ace." The unit or as of weight was the libra about I It oz. avoirdupois) ; of length, pes (foot=about I 151n.) ; of surface, jugerum (= about iac.) ; of measure, liquid amphora (about 51ga1.), dry modius (about peck). In the same way as signified a whole inheritance; whence heres ex asse, the heir to the whole estate, heres ex semisse, heir to half the estate. It was also used in the calculation of rates of interest.

As was also the name of a Roman coin (see NUMISMATICS : Roman). The old as was composed of the mixed metal aes, an alloy of copper, tin and lead, and was called as libralis, because it nominally weighed I lb. or 12 oz. (actually so). Its original shape seems to have been an irregular oblong bar, which was stamped with the figure of a sheep, ox, or sow. This, as well as the word petunia for money (pecus, cattle), indicates the fact of cattle having been the earliest Italian medium of exchange. The value was indicated by little points or globules, or other marks. After the round shape was introduced, the one side was always inscribed with the figure of a ship's prow, and the other with the double head of Janus. The subdivisions of the as had also the ship's prow on one side, and on the other the head of some deity. The weight and value of the as steadily diminished. Before silver coinage was introduced (269 B.c.) the value of the as was 6d. or 12C., in the time of Cicero less than a halfpenny. In the time of the emperor Severus its weight was lowered to about of an ounce. During the commonwealth and empire aes grave was used to denote the old as in contradistinction to the existing depreciated coin ; while aes rude was applied to the original oblong coinage of primitive times.

See J. E. Sandys, Companion to Latin Studies (1925).