The lachter (also Berglachter) was a common unit of length used in the mining industry in Europe, usually to measure depth, tunnel driving and the size of mining fields; it was also used for contract work. In most German-speaking mining fields it was the most important unit of length.
A lachter was roughly equal to the amount which a man could contain within his outstretched arms. It was thus similar to the klafter (ca. ), but was usually rather larger.
The lachter was - with regional differences - subdivided into Achtel (also called a Spann, Gräpel or Gröbel), (Lachter)Zoll, Primen (or Prinen) and Sekunden:
1 lachter = 8 Spann = 80 (Lachter)Zoll = 800 Primen = 8,000 Sekunden
In the 19th century a decimal system of subdivision was established:
1 lachter = 10 Lachterfuß = 100 Lachterzoll = 1,000 Lachterlinien
Like other units of measure, the lachter varied in length depending on the region, but there could also be differences in length within the same region. In addition there could also be differences between various mining fields within a territory. The specification and use of conversion tables only makes sense if it is known for certain, where and at which times the values were valid. Some examples:
Some kinds of Lachter Region Length of 1 Lachter in m (ft) Remarks Altenberg (Ore Mountains) Anhalt-Köthen Harzgerode Lachter Annaberg Baden (to 1827)Metz, Rudolf: Mineralogisch-Landeskundliche Wanderungen im Nordschwarzwald. 2nd ed., Lahr 1977, p. 597. = 7.5 old Baden feet (Fuß) Baden (from 1827) = 10 new Baden feet Bavaria Bayreuth equal to 80 Bayreuth inches (Zoll) Berchtesgaden equalt to 6 feet Bohemia equal to 4 ells (Ellen) Brunswick Clausthal Eisleben Freiberg Old Freiberg Lachter Hanover Idrija (Carniola) 6 Idrian feet Joachimsthal (today: Jáchymov) Johanngeorgenstadt Kronach equal to 7 Nuremberg feetNürnberg. In: Heinrich August Pierer, Julius Löbe (Hrsg.): Universal-Lexikon der Gegenwart und Vergangenheit. 4th ed. Vol. 12, Altenburg, 1861, p. 159–161 (Online at zeno.org, accessed on 22 March 2010). Quote: "town foot of 12 inches of 12 Linien = " Lippe-Detmold Marienberg Nassau Austria 1 Berglachter = 6 shoes (Schuh) Prussia 80 Prussian inches (Zoll) Saxony until 1830: 7 Dresden or Saxon feetfrom 1830: defined to be exactly . Schemnitz (today: Banská Štiavnica) Silesia Tyrol (1769-1809 and after 1815)Rottleuthner, Wilhelm: Die alten Localmasse und Gewichte nebst den Aichungsvorschriften bis zur Einführung des metrischen Mass- und Gewichtssystems und der Staatsaichämter in Tirol und Vorarlberg. Universitätsverlag Wagner: Innsbruck, 1883, p. 14-22. = Viennese Klafter Tyrol: Innsbruck (before 1769)Rottleuthner, Wilhelm: Die alten Localmasse und Gewichte nebst den Aichungsvorschriften bis zur Einführung des metrischen Mass- und Gewichtssystems und der Staatsaichämter in Tirol und Vorarlberg. Universitätsverlag Wagner: Innsbruck, 1883, p. 16 & 130. = 6 Tyrolean feet = 72 Tyrolean inches Tyrol: Kitzbühl (1747)Rottleuthner, Wilhelm: Die alten Localmasse und Gewichte nebst den Aichungsvorschriften bis zur Einführung des metrischen Mass- und Gewichtssystems und der Staatsaichämter in Tirol und Vorarlberg. Universitätsverlag Wagner: Innsbruck, 1883, p. 32. = 64 Tyrolean inches Tyrol: Schwaz = 63 Tyrolean inches Württemberg = 7 Württemberg feet
A Lachterschnur was an oiled, 10–12 Lachter long cord, used as a measuring device.
See also List of human-based units of measure List of obsolete units of measurement Obsolete Austrian units of measurement Obsolete German units of measurement
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