Why didn ancient people use rulers and measuring devices instead of body parts?
Older people in today’s time still use body parts to determine rough measurements. Watch an older lady who sews. She will hold up a length of material and “measure” it against her body. Actually, this measurement is roughly a meter, the length needed for the pattern she is using. The average adult hand is roughly 6″ long..measure your hand and see…and this measurement is good for comparison on items which should be about a foot long. Precise measurement is not generally needed for most items, unless the item needs to fit exactly into or onto another item. Measurement gives us a visual and mental “picture” of how the world looks.
