Chandragupta Maurya and His Times c9.249

c9.249

**Superintendent of Weights and Measures** (*Pautavādhyaksha*) [II, 19]. He had these manufactured. *Weights* were made of the iron or stone of Magadha and Mekala or of such material as did not expand under heat nor contract in cold. *Balances*, with scale-pans, were made, with levers from 6 *aṅgulas* or inches in length, and upwards. The Superintendent also stamped the weights and measures used by private parties, and charged a fee of 4 *Māshas* for it. There was a periodical checking of weights and measures, once every 4 months, and its cost was met from a special tax of 1 *kākaṇī* per day. There were also the lineal and square measures of space and the measures of time determined by Government.