Weights and Measures

Europeans used a great variety of systems for weighing and measuring during the Renaissance. Even within the same kingdom or territory, standards could vary widely. The ancient Romans had imposed a single system of measurements throughout their empire, but when the empire collapsed, the Roman system fell by the wayside. Many localities developed their own systems, and by the Renaissance hundreds of thousands of different weights and measures were in use.

Most units of measurement were based on quantities people used in their daily life. For example, people might measure area according to how much land they needed to produce income for the year or on the amount of land they could rent for a certain fee. Other measurements depended on the physical qualities of humans and animals. Human body parts, such as the foot and palm, formed the basis for some units of length. Ale could be measured by the hogshead, which held about 63 gallons. Some units of volume depended on units of length, as in the case of units based on the length of string required to bind up a certain volume of a product. People also based units of capacity on the amount that a ship or pack train could carry.

Some units of measure had several applications. The French aissin, for instance, could measure areas of land or volumes of grain or wood. In other cases, a single unit had more than one name. The English measures pint, jug, and stoup were used interchangeably for the same volume of liquid. In Italy, the grosso, dramma, and quarro were equal units of weight.

Central governments laid out the standards for units of measurement, but they did not always define them in precise terms. In France, for instance, there were many different ways of calculating such measures as the pied for length and the corde for firewood. Also, local variations of measures sometimes became popular and replaced the national standard. The standards used inside a town might vary from those applied outside the town walls, and units of measurement often differed at land and at sea. The French lieue (league) ranged from 2,000 to 3,000 toises (3,900 to 5,850 meters), with the greater length being used at sea.

Governments also failed to produce enough physical prototypes (uniform models) to allow people to check the accuracy of their own measuring devices. Furthermore, these prototypes were not all made in the same place. Instead, individual manufacturers created models that often varied from the original, or master, measure. Local craftsworkers further confused the issue by creating their own copies from the masters. In addition, measuring devices made of wood, lead, iron, and bronze could change with weather conditions and constant handling, further reducing their accuracy. Finally, standards of measurement changed over time. Europe did not develop a single unified system of measurement until the creation of the metric system in the late 1700s and early 1800s.