prelum

• I A press-beam for pressing grapes, olives, etc.; also, meton., a wine-press, oil-press (class.), Cato R. R. 31: cola prelorum, Verg. G. 2, 242 (prela trabes sunt, quibus uva jam calcata premitur, Serv.); Vitr. 6, 9; Plin. 18, 31, 74, § 317; Dig. 19, 2, 19.—
• II A press for smoothing clothes: tua collucent prela lacernis, Mart. 2, 46, 3; cf. id. 11, 8, 5.

• PREM-, a press(for wine or oil): cola prelorum, V.

PRELUMpart of the oil and wine press [TORCULAR]. The name is also given to other presses, as (1) that used in making paper (Plin. Nat.13.77; cf. LIBER): (2) the press for clothes used at the end of the fuller's process [FULLO], when the clothes were sprinkled (Sen. Q. N. 1.3, 2) and laid in presses, whence they were taken out ready to send home (Ammian. 28.4, 19). The prela in Mart. 2.46, 3; 11.8-Z2, 5; Claud. Epithal. Pal. 101, are similar presses in the houses for keeping the clothes smooth and ready for wear. The Greek name was ἶπος (Poll. 10.135; cf. 7.41); and a later synonym was pressorium (Ammian. l. c.; Blümner, Technologie, 1.173).

(1) The beam of the press used for squeezing grapes or olives.

(2) The press itself. (See vinum.)

(3) A clothes-press ( Q. N. i. 3, 2). In modern Latin the word is also applied to the printing-press.