Span- measure of length, equal to distance between the ends of the outstretched fingers - thumb and index (19cm - 23cm);

1 span is an arshin.

Vershok- a measure of length equal to a fraction of an arshin ("44.4 mm).

Verst- a measure of length equal to

500 fathoms =

1500 arshins =

Ancient mass measures

(In everyday life, measures of mass have long been called measures of weight.)

The image of lever scales is found in Egyptian monuments created many centuries BC.

Talent – the weight of water that fills a container with a capacity of one unit of volume.

1 talent contained 3600 skills;

1 skill= 180 grains » 10 grams

Metal weights were made based on the weight of grains, and later based on the weight of water. Weights that served as standards were kept by ancient peoples either in temples (Egypt) or in government institutions (Rome).

Ancient mass measures in Rus'

Hryvnia- the oldest measure of weight in Rus'. Introduced from the East, from Iraq. Subsequently, the hryvnia in Rus' received the name pound.

TO 19th century In Rus', the following system of weight measures was formed, which was used before the October Revolution:

Kul– a measure of the mass of granular bodies. Depending on the type of bulk solids, the measure had different numeric value. A sack of rye was equal to 151.5 kg, for oats - 100.3 kg.

Who controlled the measures in Rus'?

Supervision of measures, including weight measures, has been carried out for a long time. The need for such supervision was first mentioned in the “Church Charter” of Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich (10th century). In the letter Prince of Novgorod Vsevolod (XII century) it is said: “The bishop should keep the trading scales, measuring instruments and the bowls from the scales.” The punishment for abuse was “close to death,” and the perpetrator faced the loss of property.

Thus, weights and measures began to be kept in churches. Weighings were carried out in churches at the end of the service.

From the middle of the 16th century, the supervision of measures of length, weight and capacity (volume) passed to civil authority. In 1550, stamped ("stamped") measures were produced and distributed to the wardens and other officials.

It was a brilliant idea: units of measurement of different quantities turned out to be connected in a certain sequence

_____________________________

XVIII century – there is an urgent need to introduce an international system of measures (common to all nations).

On May 8, 1790, the French National Assembly adopted a decree on the reform of the system of measures. Special commissions were created, in which the greatest mathematicians and astronomers of the time took part. We decided to take one forty-millionth of a meridian as a unit of length.

By measuring the meridian passing through Paris and finding its one forty-millionth part, scientists obtained the length of the new measure - 1 meter.

1799 - the work on creating a metric system of measures was completed. But this system of measures did not gain popularity for a long time.

1875 - A conference was convened in Paris. Representatives of the states signed a metric convention (agreement) on the recognition of the international metric system. The International Bureau of Weights and Measures was established.

1889 – 34 meter standards and 43 kilogram standards were produced. The international prototypes of the meter and kilogram were deposited in France, at the premises of the International Commission of Weights and Measures in Sèvres, near Paris.

1960 – adopted at the XI General Conference International system units (SI).

One of the basic subjects studied at school is mathematics. But the rules of counting were not always the same as those taught to modern schoolchildren. And it’s not even about the formulas, laws, sequences and interdependencies discovered by the scientific community. The very measures used to measure objects used to be completely different. Of course, obsolete units are rarely needed in everyday life, But educated person must understand what “elbow”, “verst” and “fathom” mean in order to understand what we are talking about if faced with such a definition of the dimensions of an object or space. Ancient measures of measurement are taught as part of a general education course at school, and you can also familiarize yourself with it yourself - for example, from this article.

Useful, relevant, modern

Each of us, at least once in our lives, has come across sayings with ancient measures of measurement, but not everyone understood what dimensions we were talking about. To be sure that we accurately process incoming information, to consider ourselves educated people, modern, but aware of our history, it is important to know what terms mean what. Despite the fact that in our time ancient measures of measurement are found mainly in literature, it is necessary to know what ideas about numbers were in ancient times, because it was then that the foundations of modern arithmetic were laid, as well as ideas about proportionality.

If you become familiar with the foundations on which the modern system of units of measurement is built, you can learn more about the historical past of the state and nation. IN school age such a general introduction course makes it possible to interest schoolchildren - after all, everyone will want to show off their unique knowledge about ancient volume measures in Ancient Rus' in front of their peers. Thus, such information is useful, interesting, and easy to digest, as it arouses curiosity.

Information: is it all that simple?

To understand what ancient measures of measurement were in use, it is necessary to process many sources of information. A considerable amount can be gleaned from literature, very different - from classics to children's fairy tales. Useful information gives an introduction to sayings and proverbs. A lot of information can be gleaned from conversations with older people who in former times used ancient measures of measurement. Of course, a huge amount of information has been collected by scientists working on this issue.

Preserving and systematizing data on ancient measures of quantities allows us to preserve important historical information for the future, because the ideas about arithmetic that existed in former times also provide data about some features of the structure of society. Wisdom has been known since ancient times: the world is ruled by the one to whom numbers obey.

Ancient history

As historians have found, numbers were important to people in ancient times. At first they counted animals, fruits, products, and other representatives of society. Moreover, at first people didn’t even use numbers - they didn’t exist yet. Initially, the number of objects was compared with something characteristic of a person - the number of fingers, eyes or hands. The next step was counting on fingers. When describing the number of some objects, one could say “he has two arms and a leg,” which meant 15 pieces. The concept “whole person” described a collection of 20 objects.

Humanity developed, and at the same time arithmetic also developed, which led to the invention of numbers that were generally accepted among ordinary people. The population of Ancient Rus' paid special attention to the number “seven”. This can be seen from the sayings that have reached us. For example, as you know, even if seven troubles happen, there will still be one answer to them. With the same number there is a well-known saying about being late: seven do not wait for one. Economic activity became more complex, people felt the need for more complex measures of measurement, and in the absence of specialized terminology, concepts were literally invented from the surrounding space. For example, the original pebble counting evolved over time to the counts still in use today.

Man and the measurement system

When it became clear that humanity needed more complex systems measurements rather than pebbles and fingers, the first thing that was used to create the metric system was the idea of ​​proportionality human body. That is why ancient measures of length are designated by parts of the human body. The smallest unit, often used in everyday life, was equal to the distance separating index finger from large, if you move them apart. If we compare ancient measures of length with modern ones, then this value is about 19 cm. In former times it was called a small span. There was also a large span, for the modern metric system it is 22.5 cm. It was calculated as the distance from the little finger to thumb, if you spread your fingers. This ancient metric system is reflected in the name of the icons - “pyadnitsy” were 19-23 cm wide. Bricks produced in the 12th century were of the same size as they were intended to be laid by hand.

More and more

Of course, ancient measures of measurement in Rus' suggested measuring much larger quantities than two dozen centimeters. Here, too, measures were used that had their roots in the structural features of the human body. For example, when it was necessary to buy fabric, they usually told how many elbows needed to be measured. This measure meant the length from the tips of straightened fingers to the elbow. However, in some cases the hand was clenched into a fist, and only then the elbow was measured. As a rule, canvas was measured with elbows - one of the most durable materials, used in former times everywhere, from household purposes to clothing production.

An even larger ancient unit of measurement in Rus' was called the sazhen. This distance implied the number of centimeters separating the foot from the fingertips of the hand extended upward. In the modern metric system, a fathom is about 215 cm. However, it was such if the height of the person by whom the fathom was measured was about 171 cm. Alternative option was called a simple fathom and was officially measured on the Tmutarakan stone. The inscription on this historical monument indicates how large the width was at the time of ancient exploration. A simple fathom was determined by average height and was equal to the distance from the fingertips of one hand to the fingertips of the other, if you spread your arms to the sides. The fathom was divided into quarters, into 8 parts, thus obtaining a cubit, a span. Presumably, on the basis of a simple fathom, over time, a three-arshin was introduced.

Quite big!

When it was necessary to talk about large distances, for measuring which human height was completely unsuitable, the “verst” measure was used. Its alternative name is field. Verst is mentioned in numerous proverbs and sayings about ancient measures of measurement. It is known that the term has been in use since the eleventh century. Currently, scientists agree that the most accurate estimate of a fathom is a kilometer and 67 meters. At the same time, it must be taken into account that during the period of feudal fragmentation, the territory of each individual principality established its own measurement measures, which often did not coincide with those adopted by its neighbors.

Many used in ancient Rus' measures have changed over time. For example, the same cubit depended on the ruler of a particular principality, who had the right to establish a standard value corresponding to the size of his body. Whatever the size of the merchants and sellers, it was necessary to use exactly the elbow that was set by those in power. What joy the merchant class had in those days if power in the principality passed to a child or teenager! Well, ordinary people came up with more and more new proverbs and sayings with ancient measures of measurement, designed to reflect both worldly wisdom and the severity of the injustice that reigned around.

Size is not just length

Measuring length was not the only need in earlier times (as in other times today). No less significant were the measures that could be used to characterize bulk products. Most often, ancient mass measures were used for grain crops. IN Kievan Rus, in the principalities from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries, rye, oats and wheat were measured in tubs, which could be divided into two, four or eight parts if necessary. One tub per modern system measurements - approximately 230 kg.

From the sixteenth century to two centuries, the main ancient ancient measure of volume in the principalities that make up modern Russia and neighboring countries was a quarter. One quarter consisted of six pounds. Initially, the formation of these values ​​was based on the amount of grain that peasants sown in the fields. Over time, the measures, of course, underwent changes. Let's say, shortly before the revolution in Russian Empire the main measures were quarter, tithe; the first value was two times less than the second. As can be seen from the data collected by historians, ancient measures of length, mass, and volume are closely related to the banknotes and methods of payment for goods that were in use at that time.

The spool is small, but expensive

Who hasn't heard this proverb? There are many other folk wisdoms with ancient measures of measurement. Despite the fact that these units of measurement have already left our everyday life, their names will be preserved for posterity for many centuries to come as a treasure trove of folk wisdom. True, even modern people have little idea what the word “spool” means.

This term can be found in historical artifacts that have come down to us from the times of Kievan Rus. At the same time, pud and berkovets were in use. To this day, scientists do not know for sure whether the spool was a measure of weight or whether it designated a coin made of gold. In the same way, it is not possible to establish exactly how much a pud, a berkowets, meant at first. Over time, the following values ​​were established: pood - 16.4 kg, Berkovets - 10 poods. One pood contained 40 pounds. Mention of these measures can be found in the proverb with ancient measures of measurement “a ruble of copper, and a pound of paper.”

Wisdom and compatibility

As can be seen from the sayings about ancient measures of measurement, in ancient times people more than once encountered difficulties associated with the system of measures. It is not surprising, because everyone had their own elbow, and everyone strived for their own benefit. Due to the incorrect description of the distance, people got confused in maps and could not determine exactly how much time was needed for the journey, and other misunderstandings plagued everyday life quite often. And it’s good if it just caused irritation, but it was possible to cause the feudal lord’s displeasure, which often threatened with punishment. And what gentleman would want to listen to an explanation where the main blame was shifted to the imperfections of the current metric system?

There are known cases when imperfections in the measurement system even provoked massive popular unrest. Already in those days it was clear that it was necessary to somehow streamline the current system, otherwise there was no point in counting on the progress of society in the future. In addition, since ancient times it has been human nature to strive for justice. This eventually caused the transition to the metric system that we currently use.

Fairy tales and measures

Both the measures of measurement used in antiquity and the incidents associated with them can be learned from folk tales. This category of folk art is of particular interest, since in earlier times fairy tales were passed on from mouth to mouth, and were not written down on paper, and therefore gradually changed. The tales of each locality reflect the peculiarities of life in that area. Most often in such sources you can find references to arshin, fathom, verst, pood. From this we can rightly conclude that these were the units of measurement that were in use among ordinary people in everyday life.

Very interesting observations about ancient measures of volume, length and mass can be made from the fairy tale “The Little Humpbacked Horse,” as well as from collections of folk tales and epics. But in the legend about the sea king and Vasilisa there is a mention of punishment for guilt - transfer to the management of the site “thirty miles in length and across.” It is difficult for a modern person to imagine how large area(although according to the meaning of the legend it is clear that we're talking about about an impressive plot). If we use information about the approximate correspondence of modern measures of length, it turns out that a square is described with a width and length of 32 kilometers and 40 meters. This is the scale!

There is no limit to perfection

As can be seen from history, the measurement system invented in ancient times, based on the dimensions of the human body, turned out to be quite convenient - it was in use for almost half a millennium, despite certain imperfections. States, power, borders, and the structure of society changed, but arshins and pounds remained in everyday use as irreplaceable parts of a person’s everyday life, his idea of ​​the surrounding space. The most used of the quantities introduced in the 11th century could be found in everyday life even in the 20th century.

As you can see, those values ​​that “survived” the longest were those that denoted quite large sizes, dimensions, spaces. For example, the cubit, used in earlier times, was eventually replaced by the arshin, which remained in use in for a long time. Research shows that the elbow has been used for quite a long time in northern regions modern Russia, but in the south it was no longer used. And the smallest ancient value, used for a long time in various Slavic tribes, and then in Rus' and Russia, was called vershok. And to this day the word is familiar to many from sayings and sayings. The tip was equal to the length of the phalanx of the index finger.

What currently?

Nowadays, ancient measures of measurement have lost their original meaning, but still accompany modern man. Yes, we no longer measure distance in miles and weight in pounds, we have kilometers and kilograms. Nevertheless, we still “share a peck of salt” with true friends, we fight the problems “one like a finger.” Leaving practical application like the metric system, units of measurement have remained with us as phraseological units and sayings, reflecting the wisdom accumulated by the people.

You can constantly see references to ancient measures in classical literature, at the same time, are rich in such phrases and folk tales, legends and epics. Most often you can find references to the finger, arshin, vershok, verst. Of course they are used in fiction and fathom, span, pound.

The metric system as a science

Nowadays, one of the main units for measurement is the meter. Even in the word “metric” we can see the same root - “meter”. It was first proposed by French scientists in the 18th century. The word was formed from a Greek source - “measure” in Greek sounds like “meter”.

Every year, Metrology Day is celebrated all over the world, which falls on May 20th. The international event is usually marked by works and speeches dedicated to new inventions, developments, and improvements to the measurement system and the instruments used for it. On this day, humanity pays tribute to the merits of metrologists who streamline our lives and make it clearer, more correct and fair.

Proverbs and sayings

In what proverbs? folk wisdom Are previously used systems of measures mentioned? Below are good examples that we encounter in everyday life.

The following folk wisdom is indicative:

• "Not a step back!" (the step in the previous metric system was 71 centimeters).
• “There are 7 spans in the forehead” (as much as 189 cm!).
• “I conquered the kingdom in one step” (to conquer something by walking nothing, only 71 centimeters).
• “The pot is two inches away, and it’s already pointing!” (some 9 centimeters, that is, nothing at all, but he already controls those around him).
• You can save a pound of grain(one grain can save 16 and a half kilograms).

Folk wisdom for everyday life

Of course, not everyone these days needs to be able to convert ancient measures of measurement into those familiar to us. If you suddenly need such information, you can always find sources that reflect what corresponds to what in centimeters and grams. It is much more important for a modern person to have general idea about the metric system that existed in the past and about the rules for its application, as well as about the meaning inherent in sayings and proverbs, epics and fairy tales that have survived to this day.

The metric system is also important from the point of view that it helps develop interest in mathematics among schoolchildren, and allows historians to more accurately restore events, artifacts, and rules that governed the life of society in former times.

Today, each of us, when designating certain measures of measurement, uses only in modern terms. And this is considered normal and natural. However, when studying history or reading literary works, we often come across words such as “spans”, “arshins”, “elbows”, etc.

And this use of terms is also normal, since these are nothing more than ancient measures of measurement. Everyone should know what they mean. Why? Firstly, this is the history of our ancestors. Secondly, such knowledge is an indicator of our intellectual level.

History of the appearance of measures

The development of human society was impossible without mastering the art of counting. But this turned out to be not enough. To conduct many affairs, certain units of length, mass and area were needed. The man came up with them in the most unexpected forms. For example, any distances were determined by transitions, or steps. Ancient measures relating to human growth or specifying the amount of tissue corresponded to the length of a finger or joint, arm span, etc., that is, everything that was a kind of measuring device that was always with you.

About very interesting lengths We learn about our ancestors from chronicles and ancient letters. This includes “throwing a stone,” that is, throwing it, and “cannon shot,” and “shooting” (the flight range of an arrow), and much more. Sometimes the unit of measurement indicated the distance at which the cry of a particular animal could still be heard. It was a “cock crow”, “bull roar”, etc. An interesting measure of length existed among the peoples of Siberia. It was called “beech,” and it meant the distance at which a person’s horns visually merged into a single whole.

From the chronicles that have reached us, we can conclude that ancient measures of measurement in Rus' appeared in the 11th-12th centuries. These were units such as verst, fathom, elbow and span. However, in those days, human-invented methods for determining length were still extremely unstable. They varied somewhat depending on the principality and constantly changed over time.

From the chronicles of the 13th-15th centuries we learn that the ancient measures for measuring bulk solids (usually grain crops) are cad, halves, quarters and octets. In the 16th-17th centuries. these terms have disappeared from use. The main measure of bulk solids from this period became a quarter, which approximately corresponded to six poods.

The word “zolotnik” appears in a number of documents from the Kievan Rus era. This weight unit had the same distribution as berkovets and pud.

Length Determination

Ancient measures for measuring physical quantities were not particularly accurate. The same applies to determining the length in steps. This unit was used back in Ancient Rome, Ancient Greece, Persia and Egypt. With a human step, average length which is 71 cm, distances were determined even between cities. A similar unit is still used today. However, today special pedometer devices determine not the distance, but the number of steps taken by a person.

The measure of length that was used in the Mediterranean countries was a unit called the stade. Mention of it can be found in manuscripts dating back to the first millennium BC. e. The stage was equal to the distance that a person could walk at a calm pace from dawn to the moment when the solar disk completely appears above the horizon.

As society developed, people began to need more large quantities. In this regard, the ancient Roman mile appeared, equal to 1000 steps.

Ancient measures of length various peoples were different from each other. Thus, Estonian sailors determined the distance with tubes. This was the route the ship took during the time it took to smoke a pipe full of tobacco. The Spaniards called the same measure of length a cigar. The Japanese determined the distance with “horse shoes”. This was the path that an animal could travel before the straw sole that served as a horseshoe was completely worn out.

Basic quantities for determining length in Rus'

Let us remember the proverbs with ancient measures of measurement. One of them is well known to us from childhood: “Two inches from the pot, and already a pointer.” What is this unit of length? In Rus', it was equal to the width of the index and middle fingers. Moreover, one vershok corresponded to one sixteenth of an arshin. Today this value is 4.44 cm. But the ancient Russian measure of measurement - the nail - was 11 mm. Taken four times, it was equal to one inch.

In Rus', some ancient measures of measurement came into use in connection with the development of trade relations with other countries. This is how the quantity called arshin appeared. This name comes from the Persian word for “elbow”. In this language it sounds like “arsh”. The arshin, equal to 71.12 cm, arrived along with traders from distant countries bringing Chinese silks, velvet and Indian brocade.

When measuring out the fabric, eastern merchants stretched it over their arm to the shoulder. In other words, they measured goods in arshins. It was very convenient, because such meter was always with him. However, cunning merchants were looking for clerks with shorter arms, so that there would be less fabric per arshin. But soon this was put to an end. The authorities introduced the official yardstick, which everyone without exception had to use. It turned out to be a wooden ruler, which was made in Moscow. Copies of such a device were sent throughout Rus'. And so that no one could cheat and shorten the arshin a little, the ends of the ruler were bound with iron, on which the state mark was affixed. Today this unit of measurement is no longer used. However, the word denoting such a value is familiar to each of us. Proverbs with ancient measures of measurement also tell about it. Thus, they say about a perceptive person that he “sees three arshins underground.”

How else were distances determined in Rus'?

There are other ancient measures of length. These include fathom. The first mention of this term is found in the “Tale of the Beginning of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery,” dating back to the 11th century. Moreover, there were two varieties of fathoms. One of them is the flywheel, equal to the distance between the tips of the middle fingers of the hands spread out in different sides. The value of ancient measures of this type was equal to 1 m 76 cm. The second type of fathom is oblique. This was the length from the heel of the shoe to right leg to the tip of the middle finger of the left hand extended upward. The size of the oblique fathom was approximately 248 cm. Sometimes this term is mentioned when describing a person of heroic physique. They say that he has slanting fathoms in his shoulders.

Ancient Russian measures for measuring large distances - field or verst. The first mentions of these quantities are found in manuscripts of the 11th century. The length of the verst is 1060 m. Moreover, this term was initially used to measure arable land. It meant the distance between turns of the plow.

Ancient measures of quantities sometimes had humorous names. So, since the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich (1645-1676), very tall man began to be called This humorous term has not been forgotten even today.

Until the 18th century In Rus', such a unit of measurement was used as the boundary verst. It was used to measure the distance between borders settlements. The length of this mile was 1000 fathoms. Today it is 2.13 km.

Another ancient measure of length in Rus' was the span. Its size was approximately a quarter of an arshin and was approximately 18 cm. There were:

- “smaller span”, equal to the distance between the tips of the extended index and thumb;
- “big span”, equal to the length between the spaced thumb and middle fingers.

Many proverbs about ancient measures of measurement point us to this value. For example, “seven spans in the forehead.” This is what they say about a very smart person.

The smallest ancient unit of length is the line. It is equal to the width of a wheat grain and is 2.54 mm. This unit of measurement is still used by watch factories. Only the Swiss size is accepted - 2.08 mm. For example, the size of the men's watch "Victory" is 12 lines, and the women's "Zarya" - 8.

European units of length

From the 18th century Russia has significantly expanded its trade relations with Western countries. That is why there was a need for new measurement measures that could be compared with European ones. And then Peter I carried out a metrological reform. By his decree, some English quantities for measuring distances were introduced in the country. It was feet, inches and yards. Especially widespread These units were received in shipbuilding and the navy.

By existing legend, the yard was first defined back in 101. It was a value equal to the length from the nose of Henry I (King of England) to the tip of the middle finger of his hand, extended in a horizontal position. Today this distance is 0.91 m.

The foot and the yard are ancient measures of measurement that are closely related to each other. Descended from English word“foot” is a foot, this value is equal to one third of a yard. Today a foot is 30.48 centimeters.

The unit of measurement known as the inch gets its name from the Dutch word for thumb. How was this distance originally measured? It was equal to the length of three dried grains of barley or the phalanx of the thumb. Today, one inch is 2.54 cm and is used to determine the internal diameter car tires, pipes, etc.

Streamlining the system of measures

In order to ensure ease of transition from one unit of measurement to another, special tables were published in Rus'. On the one hand, they included ancient measures. Units of measurement foreign origin, which corresponded to the Russian ones, were placed through an equals sign. The same tables also included those units that were to be used in the country.

However, the confusion with the system of measures in Rus' did not end there. IN different cities used their own units. This came to an end only in 1918, when Russia switched to the metric system of measures.

Volume measurement

A man needed to measure bulk materials physical quantities and liquids. To do this, he began to use everything that he had in his everyday life (buckets, vessels and other containers).

What ancient events took place in Rus'? Our ancestors measured bulk solids:

1. Octopus, or octopus. This is an ancient unit equal to 104.956 liters. A similar term was applied to the area, which was 1365.675 square meters. Octopus was first mentioned in documents of the 15th century. It was widely used in Rus' because of its practicality, since it had a volume half that of a quarter. There was even a certain standard for such a measure. It was a container with an iron paddle attached. The grain was poured into such a measured octopus with a top. And then, using a rower, the contents of the form were trimmed to the edges. Samples of such containers were made of copper and sent throughout Rus'.

2. Okovom, or cadiu. These measuring containers were common in the 16th and 17th centuries. In more later periods they met extremely rarely. Okov was the main measure of bulk solids in Rus'. Moreover, the name of this unit comes from a special barrel (tub), which was adapted for measurements. The measuring container was covered with a metal hoop on top, which did not allow cunning people to trim its edges and sell less grain.

3. Quarter. This volume measure was used to determine the amount of flour, cereals and grains. In everyday life, a quarter was more common than luggage, as it had more practical dimensions (1/4 of a bag). This unit of measurement was used in Rus' from the 14th to the 19th centuries.

4. Kulem. This ancient Russian measure, used for bulk solids, was equal to 5-9 poods. Some researchers believe that the word “kul” once meant “fur.” This term was used for a container made from animal skin. Later, such containers began to be made from woven materials.

5. Buckets. Our ancestors determined the amount of liquid using this measure. It was believed that a shopping bucket could hold 8 mugs, the volume of each of which was equal to 10 mugs.

6. Barrels. Russian traders used a similar unit of measurement when selling wine to foreigners. It was believed that one barrel contained 10 buckets.

7. Korchagami. This large clay pot was used to measure the volume of grape wine. For different corners In Rus', the korchaga ranged from 12 to 15 liters.

Weight measurement

The Old Russian system of measures also included units for measuring mass. It was impossible without them trading activity. There are various ancient measures of mass. Among them:

1. Spool. Initially, this word meant a small gold coin, which was a unit of measurement. By comparing its weight with other precious items, they determined the purity noble metal, from which they were made.

2. Pud. This unit of weight was equal to 3840 spools and corresponded to 16.3804964 kg. Ivan the Terrible also ordered that any goods be weighed only from pudovniks. And since 1797, after the Law on Weights and Measures was issued, spherical weights corresponding to one and two pounds began to be made.

3. Berkovets. This name comes from the Swedish trading city of Bjerke. One Berkovets corresponded to 10 pounds or 164 kg. Initially, merchants used such a large value to determine the weight of wax and honey.

4. Share. This unit of measurement in Rus' was the smallest. Its weight was 14.435 mg, which could be compared to 1/96 of a spool. Most often, the share was used in the work of mints.

5. Pound. Initially, this was called “hryvnia”. Its size corresponded to 96 spools. From 1747 the pound became which was used until 1918.

Area Measurement

Some standards were invented by our ancestors to determine the size of land plots. These are ancient measures of area, including:

1. Square mile. Mention of this unit, equal to 1.138 sq. kilometers, found in documents dating from the 11th to the 17th centuries.

2. Tithe. This is an old Russian unit, the size of which corresponds to 2400 square meters. meters of arable land. Today the tithe is equal to 1.0925 hectares. This unit has been used since the 14th century. It was known as a rectangle, the sides of which were 80 by 30 or 60 by 40 fathoms. Such tithes were considered government and were the main land measure.

3. Quarter. This measure of arable land was a unit representing half a tithe. The quarter has been known since the end of the 15th century, and its official use continued until 1766. This unit received its name from the measure of the area on which rye could be sown in the amount of ¼ of the volume of cady.

4. Plow. This unit of area measurement was used in Rus' from the 13th to the 17th centuries. It was used for tax purposes. Moreover, several types of plow were distinguished, depending on the area of ​​​​the best land. So, such a unit was:

Sluzhila containing 800 quarters of good plowing;
- church (600 quarters);
- black (400 quarters).

In order to find out how many plows there are in the Russian state, censuses of taxable lands were carried out. And only in 1678-1679. this unit of area was replaced by a yard number.

Modern application of ancient measures

We still know about some units for determining volume, area and distance, which were widely used by our ancestors. Thus, in some countries, length is still measured in miles, yards, feet and inches, and in cooking they use a pound and a spool.

However, most often vintage units meet us in literary works, historical stories and proverbs.