What amazes me about Roman amphoras is how big some of them are. 80 gallons or better. Yet the handles seem relatively small. The pottery must be stronger than I imagine to support that weight without the handles snapping off.
I’m not sure if there’s been a correlation made between the sizes and their former contents, but there hasn’t been much study of that, it’s kind of new. The amphorae were also very often used but one time, IOW, they weren’t practicing sustainable clay technology. No wonder the Roman Empire only lasted from the conquest of Ostia (5th c BC) until the fall of Constantinople (AD 1453). ;’)
That brings up how the amphora were handled on the docks too. It won't stand upright by itself, so what did they do to secure them on the wharf?
It just seems cumbersome to me.