The following classes of Bailments were recognized under the Roman law:

(1) Deposition.

(2) Mandatum.

(3) Commodatum.

(4) Pignus.

(5) Locatio.

(6) Mutuum.

(1) A deposition was a gratuitous bailment of goods for custody or safe keeping.

(2) A mandatum was a bailment of goods for the performance of some service upon them by the bailee gratuitously.

(3) A commodatum was a gratuitous loan of a chattel for the use of the bailee gratis.

(4) A pignus or pledge was a bailment to secure the performance of an obligation, with power of sale in case of default.

(5) A locatio was a hiring of a chattel. This class was subdivided into (a) locatio rei or the hired use of a thing; (b) locatio operis, or hired services of various kinds about the thing. This, in turn, was again subdivided into locatio custodiae, or the hired custody of a thing; locatio operis faciendi, or the hired services upon a thing, and locatio operis mercium vehendarum, or the hired carriage of the thing.

5 Goddard on Bailments, Sec. 12. See writings of Bracton, Lord Holt and Sir William Jones.

(6) Mutuum was the loan of a consumable article to be consumed and returned in kind. Under the common law such a transaction constitutes a sale.