Agricola, Georgius, De re metallica, 1912/1950

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1 46[Figure 46]
SHAPE OF A MEER.
Now we call that part of the vein which is first discovered and mined,
the head-meer, because all the other meers run from it, just as the nerves
from the head.
The Bergmeíster begins his measurements from it, and the
reason why he apportions a larger area to the head-meer than to the others, is
that he may give a suitable reward to the one who first found the vein
and may encourage others to search for veins.
Since meers often reach
to a torrent, or river, or stream, if the last meer cannot be completed
it is called a fraction3. If it is the size of a double measure, the Bergmeister
grants the right of mining it to him who makes the first application, but if
it is the size of a single measure or a little over, he divides it between the
nearest meers on either side of it.
It is the custom among miners that
the first meer beyond a stream on that part of the vein on the opposite
side is a new head-meer, and they call it the “opposite,”4 while the
other meers beyond are only ordinary meers.
Formerly every head-meer
was composed of three double measures and one single one, that is, it was
forty-nine fathoms long and seven wide, and so if we multiply these two
together we have three hundred and forty-three square fathoms, which
total gives us the area of an ancient head-meer.
47[Figure 47]
SHAPE OF AN ANCIENT HEAD-MEER.
Every ancient meer was formed of a single measure, that is to say, it
was seven fathoms in length and width, and was therefore square.
In
memory of which miners even now call the width of every meer which is
located on a vena profunda a “square”5. The following was formerly the

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