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Anchor
ANCHOR (Gr. ankyra). In ancient times every ship carried several anchors. In successive periods they were made of stone, iron, lead, and perhaps other metals. Each had two flukes and was held by a cable or a chain. The word is used in
ANCHOR ăn kĕr (ἄγκυρα, G46). The ancient anchor was originally a pierced or indented stone, a form found from the Mediterranean to Polynesia. By the first cent. of the modern era, anchors of recognizable similarity to the modern type, complete with crossbar, teeth, and flukes, had been developed. There were also large wooden anchors, weighted by a lead crossbar.
Anchors are mentioned in two contexts in the NT. The first is in the brilliantly written account of the wreck of the Alexandrian grain ship in
Metaphorically, the anchor is used as a figure for hope. “We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul...” (