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Cubit

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For other uses, seeCubit (disambiguation).

Egyptian cubit rod in theLiverpool World Museum
Cubit rod ofMaya,52.3 cm long, 1336–1327 BC (Eighteenth Dynasty)

Thecubitis an ancientunitof length based on the distance from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger.[1]It was primarily associated with theSumerians,Egyptians,andIsraelites.The termcubitis found in theBibleregardingNoah's Ark,theArk of the Covenant,theTabernacle,andSolomon's Temple.Thecommon cubitwas divided into 6palms× 4fingers= 24digits.[2]Royal cubitsadded a palm for 7 palms × 4 fingers = 28 digits.[3]These lengths typically ranged from44.4 to 52.92 cm (1 ft5+1⁄2in to 1 ft8+13⁄16in), with an ancient Roman cubit being as long as 120 cm (3 ft 11 in).

Cubits of various lengths were employed in many parts of the world inantiquity,during theMiddle Agesand as recently asearly modern times.The term is still used inhedgelaying,the length of the forearm being frequently used to determine the interval between stakes placed within the hedge.[4]

Etymology

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The English word "cubit" comes from theLatinnouncubitum"elbow", from the verbcubo, cubare, cubui, cubitum"to lie down",[5]from which also comes the adjective "recumbent".[6]

Ancient Egyptian royal cubit

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Main article:Ancient Egyptian units of measurement

Theancient Egyptianroyal cubit(meh niswt) is the earliest attested standard measure. Cubit rods were used for themeasurement of length.A number of these rods have survived: two are known from the tomb ofMaya,the treasurer of the18th dynastypharaohTutankhamun,inSaqqara;another was found in the tomb of Kha (TT8) inThebes.Fourteen such rods, including one double cubit rod, were described and compared by Lepsius in 1865.[7]These cubit rods range from523.5 to 529.2 mm (20+5⁄8to20+27⁄32in) in length and are divided into sevenpalms;each palm is divided into fourfingers,and the fingers are further subdivided.[8][7][9]

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Hieroglyphof the royal cubit,meh niswt

Cubit rod from theEgyptian Museum of Turin

Early evidence for the use of this royal cubit comes from theEarly Dynastic Period:on thePalermo Stone,the flood level of theNileriver during the reign of thePharaohDjeris given as measuring 6 cubits and 1 palm.[8]Use of the royal cubit is also known fromOld Kingdomarchitecture, from at least as early as the construction of theStep Pyramid of Djoserdesigned byImhotepin around 2700 BC.[10]

Ancient Mesopotamian units of measurement

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The Nippur cubit-rod in theArcheological MuseumofIstanbul,Turkey

Ancient Mesopotamian units of measurementoriginated in the loosely organized city-states ofEarly DynasticSumer.Eachcity,kingdomand tradeguildhad its own standards until the formation of theAkkadian EmpirewhenSargon of Akkadissued a common standard. This standard was improved byNaram-Sin,but fell into disuse after the Akkadian Empire dissolved. The standard of Naram-Sin was readopted in theUr III periodby theNanše Hymnwhich reduced a plethora of multiple standards to a few agreed upon common groupings. Successors to Sumerian civilization including the Babylonians, Assyrians, and Persians continued to use these groupings.

The Classical Mesopotamian system formed the basis forElamite,Hebrew,Urartian,Hurrian, Hittite,Ugaritic,Phoenician,Babylonian, Assyrian, Persian, Arabic, and Islamic metrologies.[11][full citation needed]The Classical Mesopotamian System also has a proportional relationship, by virtue of standardized commerce, toBronze AgeHarappan and Egyptian metrologies.

In 1916, during the last years of theOttoman Empireand in the middle ofWorld War I,the GermanassyriologistEckhard Ungerfound a copper-alloy bar while excavating at Nippur. The bar dates fromc. 2650 BCEand Unger claimed it was used as a measurement standard. This irregularly formed and irregularly marked graduated rule supposedly defined the Sumerian cubit as about518.6 mm (20+13⁄32in).[12]

There is some evidence that cubits were used to measure angular separation. The Babylonian Astronomical Diary for 568-567 BCE refers to Jupiter being one cubit behind the elbow of Sagittarius. One cubit measures about 2 degrees.[13]

Biblical cubit

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Main article:Biblical and Talmudic units of measurement

The standard of the cubit (Hebrew:אמה) in different countries and in different ages has varied. This realization led the rabbis of the 2nd centuryCEto clarify the length of their cubit, saying that the measure of the cubit of which they have spoken "applies to the cubit of middle-size".[14]In this case, the requirement is to make use of a standard 6 handbreadths to each cubit,[15][16]and which handbreadth was not to be confused with an outstretched palm, but rather one that was clenched and which handbreadth has the standard width of 4 fingerbreadths (each fingerbreadth being equivalent to the width of a thumb, about 2.25 cm).[17][18]This puts the handbreadth at roughly9 cm (3+1⁄2in), and 6 handbreadths (1 cubit) at54 cm (21+1⁄2in).Epiphanius of Salamis,in his treatiseOn Weights and Measures,describes how it was customary, in his day, to take the measurement of the biblical cubit: "The cubit is a measure, but it is taken from the measure of the forearm. For the part from the elbow to the wrist and the palm of the hand is called the cubit, the middle finger of the cubit measure being also extended at the same time and there being added below (it) the span, that is, of the hand, taken all together."[19]

RabbiAvraham Chaim Naehput the linear measurement of a cubit at 48 cm (19 in).[20]Avrohom Yeshaya Karelitz(the "Chazon Ish" ), dissenting, put the length of a cubit at57.6 cm (22+11⁄16in).[21]

Rabbi and philosopherMaimonides,following theTalmud,makes a distinction between the cubit of 6 handbreadths used in ordinary measurements, and the cubit of 5 handbreadths used in measuring theGolden Altar,the base of thealtar of burnt offerings,its circuit and the horns of the altar.[14]

Ancient Greece

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Inancient Greek units of measurement,the standard forearm cubit(Greek:πῆχυς,translit.pēkhys)measured approximately460 mm (18 in).The short forearm cubit(πυγμήpygmē,lit. "fist" ),from the knuckle of the middle finger (i.e., fist clenched) to the elbow, measured approximately340 mm (13+1⁄2in).[22]

Ancient Rome

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Inancient Rome,according toVitruvius,a cubit was equal to1+1⁄2Roman feetor 6 palm widths (approximately444 mm or17+1⁄2in).[23]A 120-centimetre cubit (approximately four feet long), called the Roman ulna, was common in the Roman empire, which cubit was measured from the fingers of the outstretched arm opposite the man's hip.[24];also,[25]with[26]

Islamic world

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In the Islamic world, the cubit (dhirāʿ) had a similar origin, being originally defined as the arm from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger.[27]Several different cubit lengths were current in the medieval Islamic world for the unit of length, ranging from48.25–145.6 cm (19–57+5⁄16in), and in turn thedhirāʿwas commonly subdivided into six handsbreadths (qabḍa), and each handsbreadth into four fingerbreadths (aṣbaʿ).[27]The most commonly used definitions were:

  • thelegal cubit(al-dhirāʿ al-sharʿiyya), also known as the hand cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-yad), cubit of Yusuf (al-dhirāʿ al-Yūsufiyya,named after the 8th-centuryqāḍīAbu Yusuf), postal cubit (al-dhirāʿal-barīd), "freed" cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-mursala) and thread cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-ghazl). It measured49.8 cm (19+5⁄8in), although in theAbbasid Caliphateit measured 48.25 cm (19 in), possibly as a result of reforms of Caliphal-Ma'mun(r. 813–833).[27]
  • theblack cubit(al-dhirāʿ al-sawdāʾ), adopted in the Abbasid period and fixed by the measure used in theNilometeronRawda Islandat54.04 cm (21+1⁄4in). It is also known as the common cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-ʿāmma), sack-cloth cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-kirbās), and was the most commonly used in theMaghrebandIslamic Spainunder the nameal-dhirāʿ al-Rashshāshiyya.[27]
  • theking's cubit(al-dhirāʿal-malik), inherited from theSassanid Persians.It measured eightqabḍafor a total of66.5 cm (26+3⁄16in) on average. It was this measure used byZiyad ibn Abihifor his survey ofIraq,and is hence also known as Ziyadi cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-Ziyādiyya) or survey cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-misāḥaʾ). From Caliphal-Mansur(r. 754–775) it was also known as theHashemitecubit (al-dhirāʿ al-Hāshimiyya). Other identical measures were the work cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-ʿamal) and likely also theal-dhirāʿ al-hindāsa,which measures65.6 cm (25+13⁄16in).[27]
  • thecloth cubit,which fluctuated widely according to region: the Egyptian cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-bazzoral-dhirāʿ al-baladiyya) measured58.15 cm (22+29⁄32in), that ofDamascus63 cm (25 in), that ofAleppo67.7 cm (26+5⁄8in), that ofBaghdad82.9 cm (32+5⁄8in), and that ofIstanbul68.6 cm (27 in).[27]

A variety of more local or specific cubit measures were developed over time: the "small" Hashemite cubit of60.05 cm (23+21⁄32in), also known as the cubit of Bilal (al-dhirāʿ al-Bilāliyya,named after the 8th-centuryBasranqāḍīBilal ibn Abi Burda); the Egyptian carpenter's cubit (al-dhirāʿ bi'l-najjāri) or architect's cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-miʿmāriyya) ofc. 77.5 cm (30+1⁄2in),reduced and standardized to75 cm (29+1⁄2in) in the 19th century; the house cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-dār) of50.3 cm (19+13⁄16in), introduced by the Abbasid-eraqāḍīIbn Abi Layla; the cubit of Umar (al-dhirāʿ al-ʿUmariyya) of 72.8 centimetres (28.7 in) and its double, the scale cubit (al-dhirāʿ al-mīzāniyya) established by al-Ma'mun and used mainly for measuring canals.[27]

In medieval and early modern Persia, the cubit (usually known asgaz) was either the legal cubit of49.8 cm (19+5⁄8in), or theIsfahancubit of79.8 cm (31+7⁄16in).[27]A royal cubit (gaz-i shāhī) appeared in the 17th century with95 cm (37+1⁄2in), while a "shortened" cubit (gaz-i mukassar) of6.8 cm (2+11⁄16in) (likely derived from the widely used cloth cubit of Aleppo) was used for cloth.[27]The measure survived into the 20th century, with 1gazequal to 104 cm (41 in).[27]Mughal Indiaalso had its own royal cubit (dhirāʿ-i pādishāhī) of 81.3 cm (32 in).[27]

Other systems

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Other measurements based on the length of the forearm include some lengths ofell,theRussianlokot (локоть), the Indianhasta,theThaisok,theMalayhasta,the Tamilmuzham,the Telugumoora(మూర), theKhmerhat,and the Tibetankhru(ཁྲུ).[28]

Cubit arm in heraldry

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A heraldiccubit arm,dexter,vestedanderect

Acubit arminheraldrymay bedexterorsinister.It may bevested(with a sleeve) and may be shown in various positions, most commonlyerect,but alsofesswise(horizontal),bendwise(diagonal) and is often shown grasping objects.[29]It is most often used erect as acrest,for example by the families of Poyntz ofIron Acton,Rolle ofStevenstoneand Turton.

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Definition of CUBIT".2 February 2024.
  2. ^Vitruvian Man.
  3. ^Stephen Skinner,Sacred Geometry – Deciphering The Code(Sterling, 2009) & many other sources.
  4. ^Hart, Sarah."The Green Man".Shropshire Hedgelaying.Oliver Liebscher. Archived fromthe originalon 17 January 2019.Retrieved18 May2017.On the roadside the finish is clean and neat, a living fence of intertwined branches between stakes placed an old cubit (the length of a man's forearm or approximately 18 inches) apart.
  5. ^Cassell's Latin Dictionary
  6. ^Oxford English Dictionary,Second edition, 1989; online version September 2011.s.v."cubit"
  7. ^abRichard Lepsius (1865).Die altaegyptische Elle und ihre Eintheilung(in German). Berlin: Dümmler. p. 14–18.
  8. ^abMarshall Clagett (1999).Ancient Egyptian science, a Source Book. Volume Three: Ancient Egyptian Mathematics.Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society.ISBN978-0-87169-232-0.p.
  9. ^Arnold Dieter (1991).Building in Egypt: pharaonic stone masonry.Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-506350-9.p. 251.
  10. ^Jean Philippe Lauer (1931). "Étude sur Quelques Monuments de la IIIeDynastie (Pyramide à Degrés de Saqqarah) ".Annales du Service des Antiquités de L'EgypteIFAO31:60 p. 59
  11. ^Conder 1908, p. 87.
  12. ^Acta praehistorica et archaeologicaVolumes 7–8. Berliner Gesellschaft für Anthropologie, Ethnologie und Urgeschichte; Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut (Berlin, Germany); Staatliche Museen Preußischer Kulturbesitz. Berlin: Bruno Hessling Verlag, 1976. p. 49.
  13. ^Steele, John M.,A Brief Introduction to Astronomy in the Middle East(SAQI, 2008), pp. 41-42. Steele does not elaborate on the relationship between the cubit as a unit of length and a unit of angular separation.
  14. ^abMishnah with Maimonides' Commentary(ed.Yosef Qafih), vol. 3,Mossad Harav Kook:Jerusalem 1967,Middot3:1 [p. 291] (Hebrew).
  15. ^Mishnah(Kelim17:9–10, pp.629, note 14 – 630). In theTosefta(Kelim Baba-Metsia6:12–13), however, it brings down a second opinion, namely, that ofRabbi Meir,who distinguishes between a medium-sized cubit of 5 handbreadths, used principally for rabbinic measurements in measuring the bare and untilled ground near a vineyard and where there is a prohibition to grow therein seed plants under the laws ofDiverse Kinds,and a larger cubit of 6 handbreadths used to measure therewith the altar. Cf.Saul Lieberman,Tosefet Rishonim(part 3), Jerusalem 1939, p. 54, s.v. איזו היא אמה בינונית, where he brings down a variant reading of the same Tosefta and where it has 6 handbreadths, instead of 5 handbreadths, for the medium size cubit.
  16. ^Cf.Warren, C.(1903).The Ancient Cubit and Our Weights and Measures.London: The Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund. p.4.OCLC752584387.
  17. ^Tosefta(Kelim Baba-Metsia6:12–13)
  18. ^Mishnah with Maimonides' Commentary(ed.Yosef Qafih), vol. 1,Mossad Harav Kook:Jerusalem 1963,Kila'im6:6 [p. 127] (Hebrew).
  19. ^Epiphanius' Treatise on Weights and Measures – the Syriac Version(ed. James Elmer Dean, The University of Chicago Press: Chicago 1935, p. 69.
  20. ^Abraham Haim Noe,Sefer Ḳuntres ha-Shiʻurim(Abridged edition fromShiʻurei Torah), Jerusalem 1943, p. 17 (section 20).
  21. ^Chazon Ish,Orach Chaim39:14.
  22. ^Vörös, Gyozo (2015), "Anastylosis at Machaerus",Biblical Archaeology Review,vol. 41, no. 1, Jan/Feb 2015, p. 56
  23. ^H. Arthur Klein (1974).The Science of Measurement: A Historical Survey.New York: Dover.ISBN9780486258393.p. 68.
  24. ^Stone, Mark H. (30 January 2014). Kaushik Bose (ed.)."The Cubit: A History and Measurement Commentary (Review Article)".Journal of Anthropology.2014:489757 [4].doi:10.1155/2014/489757.
  25. ^Grant, James (1814).Thoughts on the Origin and Descent of the Gael: With an Account of the Picts, Caledonians, and Scots; and Observations Relative to the Authenticity of the Poems of Ossian.Edinburgh: For A. Constable and Company. p.137.Retrieved1 January2018.Solinus, cap. 45, uses ulna for cubitus, where Pliny speaks of a crocodile of 22 cubits long. Solinus expresses it by so many ulnae, and Julius Pollux uses both words for the same... they call a cubitus an ulna.
  26. ^Ozdural, Alpay (1998). Necipoğlu, Gülru (ed.). "Sinan's Arsin: A Survey of Ottoman Architectural Metrology".Muqarnas: An Annual on the Visual Culture of the Islamic World.15.Leiden, The Netherlands: 109.ISSN0732-2992.... Roman ulna of four feet...
  27. ^abcdefghijkHinz, W. (1965)."Dhirāʿ".InLewis, B.;Pellat, Ch.&Schacht, J.(eds.).The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition.Volume II: C–G.Leiden: E. J. Brill. pp. 231–232.OCLC495469475.
  28. ^Rigpa Wiki, accessed January 2022, "[1]"
  29. ^Allcock, Hubert (2003).Heraldic design: its origins, ancient forms, and modern usage, with over 500 illustrations.Mineola, N.Y.: Dover Publications. p. 24.ISBN048642975X.

Bibliography

[edit]
[edit]
Wikisourcehas the text of the 1921Collier's EncyclopediaarticleCubit.
  • Media related toCubit armsat Wikimedia Commons
  • The dictionary definition ofcubitat Wiktionary
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