[USMA:18616] Historical units

[kilopascal]

2002-03-08   From:  http://users.aol.com/jackproot/met/antbible.html   Greece generally a foot of 309 mm (12.16 ") subdivided into 16 digits and equal to 2/3 of a (small) cubit - take or leave 4 %. There was also an older foot of 316 mm equal to 3/5 of a big cubit - 527 mm 1 digit or "daktylos" - plural : "daktyloi" (= 19.3 mm) 2 digits = 1 "condylos" 4 digits = 1 "palaiste" 8 digits = 1 "dichas" 12 digits = 1 "spithame" 16 digits = 1 "pous" or foot - plural "podes" (= 309 mm) 20 digits = 1 "pygon" 24 digits = 1 "pechya" or small cubit 40 digits = 1 "bema" 72 digits = 4.5 feet = 1 "xylon" 6 feet = 1 "orgyia" (or fathom - 1.854 m) 10 feet = 1 "akaina" 100 feet = 1 "plethron" 600 feet or 6 plethra = 1 "stadion" ( 185.4 m) 2 stadia = 1 "diaulos" 6 diauloi = 1 "dolichos" there was also a "stathmos", poorly defined - estimated by some authors as 25.8 km (16 miles) - is it another name for "mansion" ? The Persian parasang was also adopted quite soon and seems to represent the distance walked in 1 hour. (Did you ever read Xenophon ? I had to.) The stadion - whatever its name - was quite widespread throughout antiquity. It is similar to the English furlong and close to 100 toises (fathoms) in Old France. Was it the optimal lenght for a plough furrow ?     The Greeks had no mile, as seen here.  The "dolichos" is equal to 2224.8 m.  If this is the "mile" the BWMA is referring to, then 25 of these would equal 55.62 km.  And 24 British miles equals 38.62 km.  Not even close.   I think the BWMA association has some explaining to do.  But, I won't hold my breath waiting for them to produce one.   I wonder if John Mitchell of the Daily Mirror ever bothered to verify the BWMA claims.  It sure would serve him and the BWMA right if some one with the facts would contact a competing newspaper and get them to print the truth.  It would make the Daily Mirror look like a foolish rag, which we all know that it is.   John