It was Amphora recovered by sponge divers that provided the initial impetus for the creation of The Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archeology.The museum now houses the largest collection in the world and it grows every year.Besides those on display, there are hundreds laying under trees and bushes....the moats, which are still to be restored, contain stacks of them. The name amphora is Latin, derived from the Greek amphoreus, an abbreviation of amphiphoreus, a compound word combining amphi- (on both sides) plus phoreus (carrier), referring to the vessel's two carrying handles on opposite sides. Amphora is also an ancient Roman unit of measurement for liquids. The volume of a Roman amphora was one cubic foot or 26.026 Litres. Amphorae were used in vast numbers to transport and store various products, both liquid and dry, in the ancient Mediterranean world and later the Roman Empire.Most were produced with a pointed base to allow upright storage by being partly embedded in sand or soft ground. This also facilitated transport by ship, where the amphorae were tightly packed together, with ropes passed through their handles to prevent breaking or toppling in rough seas.Amphorae varied greatly in height,the largest could stand as much as 1.5 metres (5 ft) high, while some were under 30 centimetres (12 in) high - the smallest were called amphoriskoi (literally little amphorae).Amphorae first appeared on the Phoenician coast around 3500 BC and spread around the ancient world, being used by the ancient Greeks and Romans as the principal means for transporting and storing grapes, olive oil, wine, oil, olives, grain, fish, and other commodities. They were produced on an industrial scale from Greek times and used around the Mediterranean until about the 7th century AD. Wooden and skin containers seem to have supplanted amphorae thereafter. Amphorae were so cheap and plentiful that return to their origin-point was pointless and so, when empty, they were simply broken up. In Rome this happened in an area named Testaccio, close to the River Tiber, the fragments, later wetted with Calcium hydroxide, remained to create a man made hill now named Monte Testaccio, it stands 45 meters tall and more than 1 km in circumference... Right! follow me, onwards and upwards....