Historical information

Before metric measurement was introduced land was measured by a tool of chains and links called a surveyor's chain. The first surveyor's chain was designed by the English clergyman and mathematician Edmund Gunter (1581-1626) and introduced in 1620. It comprised of a metal chain made up of 100 links measuring a precise overall length of 66 ft or 22 yards, with each link measuring 7.92 inches (201.168 mm). The Gunter's chain was originally intended to be used in the accurate laying out and measurement of plots of land, for legal and commercial purposes, but was subsequently widely used by surveyors throughout the British Empire and Europe, with an Imperial mile being 80 times the Gunter's chain length.

Significance

A tool used to survey the land before the introduction of the metric system.

Physical description

Surveyor chain Gunter type, 100 links measuring 66 feet in length. Hand grips at each end of chain. Wire links are approximately eight inches long. Incised tags or markers are attached to each tenth link of chain to assist with the more accurate recording of intermediate distances.