Spanish Measures

Cablava

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May 24, 2005
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"Borrowed from Chronicale of Shipwrecks and Sunken Treasure 900-1900AD" (anyone read it)

Spainish Measures

1 pulgada 1 inch
1 palmo 8.346 inches
1 codo (of Ribeira) 16.69 inches
1 codo 22.56 inches
1 vara (standard) 2.782 feet
1 estadale (pre 1801) 10.9581 to 11.1283 feet
1 estadale (post 1801) 10.0449 to 10.2010 feet
1 estado 5.4792 to 5.56642 feet

One braza or fathom varied from 5.4791 feet to 6.0 feet. It varied as to the arm span of a man and /or the type of vessel from which depth soundings were taken.

One cable length was generally 606 feet, but smaller lengths were also in use.

One legua legal (legal league) was a land league and was divided into 3 millas (or miles) of 4,566 feet each. There were 26.62 leguas to 1 degree of latitude. Today's equivalent of this league is 2.2544 nautical miles or 2.5943 statute miles. This legua was abolished by King Philip II in 1568.

One Iegua nautica (nautical league), during the time period 1400-1600, was equal to 4 Roman miles. A Roman mile consisted of 4,842 English feet. The nautical league was 19,368 feet which was the equivalent of 3.1876 modern nautical miles of 6076 feet or 3.6682 statute miles of 5,280 feet each. The number of leagues to the degree, however, varied from 14 1/6 to 16 2/3.

One legua de por grado (league of the degree) during 1400's to the 1630's was equal to 4 Arabic miles of 6,444 English feet each. A degree of latitude was composed of 16 2/3 Arabic leagues equal to 429,600 feet or the modern equivalent of 70.7044 nautical and 81.3638 statute miles. A single legua de por grado was equal to 4.2423 nautical miles and 4.8818 statute miles. The majority of ancient writers say that 1 Arabic mile contained 6,444 English feet. However, others believed there were only 6,000 feet to 1 Arabic mile, and if so the following should be considered: 4 Arabic miles equal 1 league or 24,000 feet. 16 2/3 leagues of 24,000 feet each equal 400,008 feet or 65.8341 nautical and 75.7591 statute miles. A single legua por grado in this case is 3.95 nautical and 4.5455 statute miles.
 

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