[Avodah] Length, the Aruch haShulchan's shitah

[Micha Berger]

The AhS discusses length a few times, but I just passed CM 218:1. It ends:
	And know that according to the measure in our country of Russia,
	every 4 amos in the gemara is 3 arshin of ours,
	which is 7 regel ["fut"] which is one sazhen.
	And every tefach is 2 vieshoks.

Well, there is the translations from wikipedia's page on "Obsolete
Russian Units of Measurement"
>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obsolete_Russian_units_of_measurement>.

1 fut = 30.48 cm (= 1' British Empirial) = 3/7 arshin
1 arshin = 71.12cm = 2-1/3'
1 sachen = 3 arshin = 2.1336m = 7'

So, 4 amos = 3 arshin
1 ammah = 3/4 arshin = 3/4 * 2-1/3 ft = 1.75' = 21"

1 vershok = 1/16 of an arshin = 4.445cm = 1-3/4"

Meaning a tefach is 3.5". ( 1 tefach * 6 tefachim / ammah = 21" = 1 ammah)

Compare to RMF (IM OC 1:136) who says that a tefach is 4.54" (9cm)
and an ammah is 21-1/4" (53.98cm).

Given the round numbers the AhS is working with -- 3/4 of a local unit
of measure -- RMF and the AhS could differ only by rounding tolerance.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Nearly all men can stand adversity,
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