Bematist (), plural bematists or bematistae (), meaning 'step measurer' (from βῆμα bema, meaning 'step, pace'),. were specialists in ancient Greece and ancient Egypt who measured distances by pacing.
Measurements of Alexander's bematists Bematists accompanied Alexander the Great on his campaign in Asia. Their measurements of the distances traveled by Alexander's army show a high degree of accuracy to the point that it had been suggested that they must have used an odometer, although there is no direct mentioning of such a device:
The table below lists distances of the routes as measured by two of Alexander's bematists, Baeton and . They were recorded in Pliny's Naturalis Historia (NH 6.61–62). Another similar set of measurements is given by Strabo (11.8.9) following Eratosthenes. Eratosthenes calculated the circumference of the Earth based on work of Egyptian bematists.All data from: Engels 1978, p. 157
Pliny 6.61–62 Strabo 11.8.9Actual distance Route Milia passuum 1) English milesKilometers Deviation Stadia 2) English milesKilometers Deviation English milesKilometersRouteNorthern Caspian Gates – Hecatompylos — —— —19600.8% main roadSouthern Caspian Gates – Hecatompylos1332.4% — —— — main roadHecatompylos – Alexandria Areion575 0.4%45301.9% Silk RouteAlexandria Areion – Prophtasia1993.2%16002.6% Herat-JuwainProphtasia – Arachoti Polis5651%41209.7% Juwain – Kelat-i-GhilzaiArachoti Polis – Hortospana2500.4%20000.4% main road Kelat-i-Ghilzai – Kabul Hortospana – Alexandria ad Caucasum502.1% — —— — Kabul – Begram Alexandria ad Caucasum – Peucolatis2373.2% — —— — Begram – Charsada Peucolatis – Taxila6020% — —— — Charsada – Taxila Taxila – Hydaspes (Jhelum)1204.8% — —— — Aurel Stein’s routeAlexandria Areion – Bactra – Zariaspa3) — —— —38701.6% via Kala Nau, Bala Murghab, Maimana and AndkhuiAverage 4.2%2.8%Median 2.8%1.9%
Notes: 1) 1 mille passus = 2) 1 Attic stadion = 3) The route is not recorded to have been followed by Alexander himself.
List of bematists AmyntasHeckel, Waldemar: Who's Who in the Age of Alexander the Great: Prosopography of Alexander's Empire, Blackwell, 2006, , p. 26 Baeton Diognetus Philonides of ChersonissosHeckel, Waldemar: Who's Who in the Age of Alexander the Great: Prosopography of Alexander's Empire, Blackwell, 2006, , p. 216Epigraphical Database: Elis — Olympia — 336–323 BCE
See also Ancient Greek units of measurement Gromatici Surveyor's wheel Pace count beads
References
Bibliography Engels, Donald W. (1978). Alexander the Great and the Logistics of the Macedonian Army. University of California Press, Los Angeles, 1978,