History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c29.s2.t3.46

v1.c29.s2.t3.46

The above description of the size of the bricks from N.B.P.W. phase to Gupta period and onwards brings out the fact that bricks though made in moulds do not show any standardization as prevalent during Harappan period. This is mainly due to the fact that no scale was prevalent (none has been reported from any site after the Harappans). The measurements were taken from human body, length of the brick was based on hasta (forearm e.g. cubit), breadth on vitasti (stretched hand or span) and the thickness was based on four *angulas* (fingers). As this varied from person to person, the variation in the size of bricks can be explained as done by Lal (1983).