An official system of weights and measures was established in the ancient Persian Empire under the Achaemenid dynasty (550-350 BCE). The shekel and mina ("profane" or "sacred") were units of both weight and volume. A shekel or mina weight was equal to the weight of that volume of water. The talent was a measure of weight used for large amounts of coinage. Some related units were used in Persia in the 19th century, and are still used in contemporary Iran.

Ancient Persian units

Length

Volume

The ''shekel'' and ''mina'' ("profane" or "sacred") were units of both weight and volume. A ''shekel'' or ''mina'' weight was equal to the weight of that volume of water. Note that the values given for the ''mina'' do not match the definitions. : 1 ''shekel'' = 8.3 ml (approximately 1 cubic ''aiwas''). : 1 profane ''mina'' = 50 ''shekel'' = 500 ml (approximately 27 cubic ''aiwas''). : 1 sacred ''mina'' = 60 ''shekel'' = 600 ml (approximately 1 cubic ''dva''). : 1 talent (volume) = 60 profane ''mina'' = 25 liters (approximately 1 cubic ''trayas'').

Weight

The talent was a measure of weight used for large amounts of coinage (bullion, bulk coin), rather than an individual coin. Seven Babylonian talents equalled ten Attic talents, according to a list of the revenues of Cyrus the Great (Cyrus II of Persia) recorded in

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer A geographer is a physical scientist, social scientist or humanist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society ...

. 𐎣𐎼𐏁 (karša) or 𐎣𐎼𐏁𐎹𐎠 (karšayā) is a unit of weight equal to 10 Babylonian ''shekels'' or Babylonian ''mina'' weighing approximately .British Museum No. 91117 Inscribed weight; http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=367895&partId=1

Units used in modern Persia (Iran)

Some related units were used in Persia in the 19th century, and are still used in contemporary

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

Length

: 1 ''arsani'' or ''ulna'' = 52-64 cm. : 1 ''arish'' = : 1 ''chebel'' = 40 ''arsani'' = 21-25 meters or 23-30 yards. : 1 ''farsang'' (parasang) = 6.23 km in 19th century Persia. : 1 ''farsang'' = 10 kilometers in modern Iran and

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

Volume

: 1 ''chenica'' = 1.32 liters.

References

Obsolete units of measurement Human-based units of measurement Systems of units Units of measurement by country {{measurement-stub