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Roman milestone in modern Austria (AD 201), indicating a distance of 28 Roman miles (~41 km) to Teurnia. The basic unit of Roman linear measurement was the pes (plural: pedes) or Roman foot. Investigation of its relation to the English foot goes back at least to 1647, when John Greaves published his Discourse on the Romane foot.
Its exact size varied from city to city and could range between 270 mm (10.6 in) and 350 mm (13.8 in), but lengths used for temple construction appear to have been about 295 mm (11.6 in) to 325 mm (12.8 in); the former was close to the size of the Roman foot. The standard Roman foot (pes) was normally about 295.7 mm (11.6 in) (97% of today's ...
The Roman foot (~296 mm) was divided into both 12 unciae (inches) (~24.7 mm) and 16 digits (~18.5 mm). The Romans also introduced the mille passus (1000 paces) or double steps, the pace being equal to five Roman feet (~1480 mm). The Roman mile of 5000 feet (1480 m) was introduced into England during the occupation.
These dimensions make more sense when expressed in ancient Roman units of measurement: The dome spans 150 Roman feet; the oculus is 30 Roman feet in diameter; the doorway is 40 Roman feet high. [58] The Pantheon still holds the record for the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. It is also substantially larger than earlier domes. [59]
Augustus instituted reforms aimed at increasing the safety of buildings in the city of Rome. [18] Because of the dangers of fire and collapse, the height of the insulae were restricted by Augustus to 70 Roman feet called the pes (20.7 m), and again to an unspecified amount [4] by Emperor Nero after The Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD.
The jugerum or juger (Latin: iūgerum, iūgera, iūger, or iugus) [a] was a Roman unit of area, equivalent to a rectangle 240 Roman feet in length and 120 feet in width (about 71×35½ m), i.e. 28,800 square Roman feet (Latin: pedes quadratum) [1] or about 1 ⁄ 4 hectare (0.623 acre).
The Roman panoply consists firstly of a shield (scutum), the convex surface of which measures 2.5 ft (76 cm) in width and 4 ft (120 cm) in length, the thickness at the rim being a palm's breadth. It is made of two planks glued together, the outer surface being then covered first with canvas and then with calfskin.
The Anglo-Saxons introduced a North-German foot of 13.2 inches (335 mm), divided into 4 palms or 12 thumbs, while the Roman foot continued to be used in the construction crafts. In the late 13th century, the modern foot of 304.8 mm was introduced, equal to exactly 10 ⁄ 11 Anglo-Saxon foot. Cubit: 457.2 mm: From fingertips to elbow, 18 inches ...