Ancient Greek units of measurement
Ancient Greek units of measurement varied according to location and epoch. Systems of ancient weights and measures evolved as needs changed; Solon and other lawgivers also reformed them en bloc. Some units of measurement were found to be convenient for trade within the Mediterranean region and these units became increasingly common to different city states. The calibration and use of measuring devices became more sophisticated. By about 500 BC, Athens had a central depository of official weights and measures, the Tholos, where merchants were required to test their measuring devices against official standards.
Length
Some Greek measures of length were named after parts of the body, such as the δάκτυλος (daktylos, plural: δάκτυλοι daktyloi) or finger (having the size of a thumb), and the πούς (pous, plural: πόδες podes) or foot (having the size of a shoe). The values of the units varied according to location and epoch (e.g., in Aegina a pous was approximately 333 mm (13.1 in), whereas in Athens (Attica) it was about 296 mm (11.7 in)),[1] but the relative proportions were generally the same
| Unit | Greek name | Equal to | Modern equivalent | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| daktylos | δάκτυλος | 19.3 mm (0.76 in) | finger | |
| kondylos | κόνδυλος | 2 daktyloi | 38.5 mm (1.52 in) | |
| palaistē or dōron | παλαιστή, δῶρον | 4 daktyloi | 77.1 mm (3.04 in) | palm |
| dichas or hēmipodion | διχάς, ἡμιπόδιον | 8 daktyloi | 154.1 mm (6.07 in) | half foot |
| lichas | λιχάς | 10 daktyloi | 192.6 mm (7.58 in) | |
| orthodōron | ὀρθόδωρον | 11 daktyloi | 211.9 mm (8.34 in) | |
| spithamē | σπιθαμή | 12 daktyloi | 231.2 mm (9.10 in) | span of all fingers |
| pous | πούς | 16 daktyloi | 308.2 mm (12.13 in) | foot |
| pygmē | πυγμή | 18 daktyloi | 346.8 mm (13.65 in) | forearm |
| pygōn | πυγών | 20 daktyloi | 385.3 mm (15.17 in) | |
| pēchys | πῆχυς | 24 daktyloi | 462.3 mm (18.20 in) | cubit |
| Except where noted, based on Smith (1851).[2] Metric equivalents are approximate. | ||||
| Unit | Greek name | Equal to | Modern equivalent | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| pous | πούς | 0.308 m (1.01 ft) | foot | |
| haploun bēma[3] | ἁπλοῦν βῆμα | 2 1⁄2 podes | 0.77 m (2.5 ft) | step |
| bēma,[2] diploun bēma[3] | βῆμα, διπλοῦν βῆμα | 5 podes | 1.54 m (5.1 ft) | pace |
| orgyia | ὄργυια | 6 podes | 1.85 m (6.1 ft) | fathom |
| kalamos, akaina or dekapous | κάλαμος, ἄκαινα, δεκάπους | 10 podes | 3.08 m (10.1 ft) | |
| hamma | ἅμμα | 60 podes | 18.5 m (20.2 yd) | |
| plethron | πλέθρον | 100 podes | 30.8 m (33.7 yd) | |
| stadion | στάδιον | 600 podes | 184.9 m (202.2 yd) | an eighth of a Roman mile |
| diaulos | δίαυλος | 2 stadia | 369.9 m (404.5 yd) | |
| hippikon | ἱππικόν | 4 stadia | 739.7 m (808.9 yd) | |
| milion | μίλιον | 8 stadia | 1.479 km (1,617 yd) | Roman mile |
| dolichos[3] | δόλιχος | 12 stadia | 2.219 km (1.379 mi) | |
| parasanges, or league[4] | παρασάγγες | 30 stadia | 5.548 km (3.447 mi) | adopted from Persia[3] |
| schoinos | σχοινός | 40 stadia | 7.397 km (4.596 mi) | adopted from Egypt[3] |
| stage[4] | 160 stadia | 29.8 km (18.5 mi) | ||
| Except where noted, based on Smith (1851).[2] Metric equivalents are approximate. | ||||
Area
The ordinary units used for land measurement were:
| Unit | Greek name | Equal to | Modern equivalent | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| pous | πούς | 0.095 m2 (1.02 sq ft) | square foot | |
| hexapodēs | ἑξαπόδης | 36 podes | 3.42 m2 (36.8 sq ft) | square six-foot |
| akaina | ἄκαινα | 100 podes | 9.50 m2 (102.3 sq ft) | |
| hēmiektos | ἡμίεκτος | 833 1⁄3 podes | 79.2 m2 (853 sq ft) | half a sixth |
| hektos | ἕκτος | 1666 2⁄3 podes | 158.3 m2 (1,704 sq ft) | a sixth of a plethron |
| aroura | ἄρουρα | 2500 podes | 237.5 m2 (2,556 sq ft) | |
| plethron | πλέθρον | 10000 podes | 950 m2 (10,200 sq ft) | |
| Except where noted, based on Smith (1851).[2] Metric equivalents are approximate. | ||||
Volume
 Neck amphora depicting an athlete running the hoplitodromos by the Berlin Painter, ca. 480 BC, Louvre. |
Greeks measured volume according to either dry or liquid capacity, suited respectively to measuring grain and wine. A common unit in both measures throughout historic Greece was the cotyle or cotyla whose absolute value varied from one place to another between 210 ml and 330 ml.[1] The basic unit for both solid and liquid measures was the κύαθος (kyathos, plural: kyathoi).[3]
The Attic liquid measures were:
| Unit | Greek name | Equal to | Modern equivalent | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| kochliarion | κοχλιάριον | 4.5 ml (0.15 US fl oz; 0.16 imp fl oz) | spoon | |
| chēmē | χήμη | 2 kochliaria | 9.1 ml (0.31 US fl oz; 0.32 imp fl oz) | |
| mystron | μύστρον | 2 1⁄2 kochliaria | 11.4 ml (0.39 US fl oz; 0.40 imp fl oz) | |
| konchē | κόγχη | 5 kochliaria | 22.7 ml (0.77 US fl oz; 0.80 imp fl oz) | |
| kyathos | κύαθος | 10 kochliaria | 45.5 ml (1.54 US fl oz; 1.60 imp fl oz) | |
| oxybathon | ὀξυβαθον | 1 1⁄2 kyathoi | 68.2 ml (2.31 US fl oz; 2.40 imp fl oz) | |
| tetarton,[2] hēmikotylē[3] | τέταρτον, ἡμικοτύλη | 3 kyathoi | 136.4 ml (4.61 US fl oz; 4.80 imp fl oz) | |
| kotylē, tryblion or hēmina | κοτύλη, τρύβλιον, ἡμίνα | 6 kyathoi | 272.8 ml (9.22 US fl oz; 9.60 imp fl oz) | |
| xestēs | ξέστης | 12 kyathoi | 545.5 ml (1.153 US pt; 0.9599 imp pt) | Roman sextarius |
| chous | χοῦς | 72 kyathoi | 3.27 l (6.9 US pt; 5.75 imp pt) | |
| keramion | κεράμιον | 8 choes | 26.2 l (6.9 US gal; 5.8 imp gal) | Roman amphora |
| metrētēs | μετρητής | 12 choes | 39.3 l (10.4 US gal; 8.6 imp gal) | amphora |
| Except where noted, based on Smith (1851).[2] Metric equivalents are approximate. | ||||
and the Attic dry measures of capacity were:
| Unit | Greek name | Equal to | Modern equivalent | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| kochliarion | κοχλιάριον | 4.5 ml (0.15 US fl oz; 0.16 imp fl oz) | ||
| kyathos | κύαθος | 10 kochliaria | 45.5 ml (1.54 US fl oz; 1.60 imp fl oz) | |
| oxybathon | ὀξυβαθον | 1 1⁄2 kyathoi | 68.2 ml (2.31 US fl oz; 2.40 imp fl oz) | |
| kotylē or hēmina | κοτύλη, ἡμίνα | 6 kyathoi | 272.8 ml (9.22 US fl oz; 9.60 imp fl oz) | |
| xestēs | ξέστης | 12 kyathoi | 545.5 ml (1.153 US pt; 0.9599 imp pt) | Roman sextarius |
| choinix | χοῖνιξ | 24 kyathoi | 1.09 l (2.3 US pt; 1.92 imp pt) | |
| hēmiekton | ἡμίεκτον | 4 choinikes | 4.36 l (1.15 US gal; 0.96 imp gal) | |
| hekteus | ἑκτεύς | 8 choinikes | 8.73 l (2.31 US gal; 1.92 imp gal) | a sixth of a medimnos |
| medimnos | μέδιμνος | 48 choinikes | 52.4 l (13.8 US gal; 11.5 imp gal) | |
| Except where noted, based on Smith (1851).[2] Metric equivalents are approximate. | ||||
Currency
The basic unit of Athenian currency was the obol, weighing approximately 0.72 grams of silver:[5][6]
| Unit | Greek name | Equivalent | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| obol or obolus | ὀβολός | 1⁄6 drachma, 4 tetartemorions | 0.72 g (0.023 ozt) |
| drachma | δραχμή | 6 obols | 4.3 g (0.14 ozt) |
| mina | μνᾶ | 100 drachmae | |
| talent | τάλαντον | 60 minae |
Weight
Weights are often associated with currency since units of currency involve prescribed amounts of a given metal. Thus for example the English pound has been both a unit of weight and a unit of currency. Greek weights similarly bear a nominal resemblance to Greek currency yet the origin of the Greek standards of weights is often disputed.[7] There were two dominant standards of weight in the eastern Mediterranean - a standard that originated in Euboea and that was subsequently introduced to Attica by Solon, and also a standard that originated in Aegina. The Attic/Euboean standard was supposedly based on the barley corn, of which there were supposedly twelve to one obol. However, weights that have been retrieved by historians and archeologists show considerable variations from theoretical standards. A table of standards derived from theory is as follows:[7]
Unit Greek name Equivalent Attic/Euboic standard Aeginetic standard obol or obolus ὀβολός [8] 0.72 g (0.025 oz) 1.05 g (0.037 oz) drachma δραχμή [9] 6 obols 4.31 g (0.152 oz) 6.3 g (0.22 oz) mina μνᾶ [10] 100 drachmae 431 g (15.2 oz) 630 g (22 oz) talent τάλαντον [11] 60 minae 25.86 kg (57.0 lb) 37.8 kg (83 lb)
Time
Athenians measured the day by sundials and unit fractions. Periods during night or day were measured by a water clock (clepsydra) that dripped at a steady rate and other methods. Whereas the day in the Gregorian calendar commences after midnight, the Greek day began after sunset. Athenians named each year after the Archon Eponymos for that year, and in Hellenistic times years were reckoned in quadrennial epochs according to the Olympiad.
In archaic and early classical Greece, months followed the cycle of the Moon which made them not fit exactly into the length of the solar year. Thus, if not corrected, the same month would migrate slowly into different seasons of the year. The Athenian year was divided into 12 months, with one additional month (poseideon deuteros, thirty days) being inserted between the sixth and seventh months every second year. Even with this intercalary month, the Athenian or Attic calendar was still fairly inaccurate and days had occasionally to be added by the Archon Basileus. The start of the year was at the summer solstice (previously it had been at the winter solstice) and months were named after Athenian religious festivals, 27 mentioned in the Hibah Papyrus, circ 275 BC.
| Month | Greek name | Gregorian equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Hecatombaeon | Ἑκατομβαιών | June–July |
| Metageitnion | Μεταγειτνιών | July–August |
| Boedromion | Βοηδρομιών | August–September |
| Pyanepsion | Πυανεψιών | September–October |
| Maemacterion | Μαιμακτηριών | October–November |
| Poseideon | Ποσειδεών | November–December |
| Gamelion | Γαμηλιών | December–January |
| Anthesterion | Ἀνθεστηριών | January–February |
| Elaphebolion | Ἐλαφηβολιών | February–March |
| Munychion | Μουνυχιών | March–April |
| Thargelion | Θαργηλιών | April–May |
| Scirophorion | Σκιροφοριών | May–June |
See also
References
- 1 2 "Measures". The Oxford Classical Dictionary. 2003.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Smith, Sir William; Charles Anthon (1851) A new classical dictionary of Greek and Roman biography, mythology, and geography partly based upon the Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology New York: Harper & Bros. Tables, pp. 1024–30
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 EIM:Metrology:History. Hellenic Institute of Metrology (EIM). Archived 13 April 2009.
- 1 2 Xenophon, Anabasis. ca 400 B.C.
- ↑ British Museum Catalogue 11 - Attica Megaris Aegina
- ↑ WEIGHT STANDARDS AND DENOMINATIONS, GREEK COINS Tulane University Archived May 4, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.
- 1 2 "Weights". The Oxford Classical Dictionary. 2003.
- ↑ ὀβολός. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project
- ↑ δραχμή. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project
- ↑ μνᾶ. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project
- ↑ τάλαντον. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project
External links
- "History 310: Greek Coinage and Measures". History/Classics 310. Archived from the original on April 8, 2005. Retrieved December 15, 2005.
- Porter, John. "Greek and Roman Weights, Measures and Currency". Archived from the original on 6 August 2007. Retrieved July 26, 2007.
- Online Conversion of Ancient Greek Units