Roman Foot (pes)

Ancient RomanHistorical unit (no longer in standard use)Approximate value

The basic Roman unit of length, about 29.6 cm (11.65 in). Surviving rulers vary by a few millimeters, so values differ slightly between sources.

1 Roman foot = 0.296 meters (approximately).

Approximate value. Standards for the Roman foot varied by place and period, so this converter uses the most commonly cited value. Treat results as estimates, not exact figures.

About the Roman foot

Latin pes, the word for the human foot, named the basic length of Roman building, surveying and road making. The accepted modern value is about 296 mm, and the figure used here is 296 mm. Surviving evidence does not agree to the millimeter. In 1639 the English scholar John Greaves compared monuments and objects in Rome and got 295 mm from a statue of Cossutius, 296 mm from the tomb of Statilius, and 301 mm from a congius vessel of Vespasian. William Smith later gave about 295.9 mm.

The foot could be divided into 12 unciae, or inches, or into 16 digiti, or fingers, a split borrowed from the Greek pous. Larger units were built from it, including the cubit at one and a half feet, the pace at five feet and the mile at 5,000 feet. A longer provincial foot, the pes Drusianus, measured roughly 333 to 335 mm. The English foot, about 304.8 mm, is close to the Roman one but about 3 percent longer.

Sources: Wikipedia: Pes (unit); Wikipedia: Ancient Roman units of measurement

Roman Foot conversion chart

1 Roman foot expressed in every other length unit:

More Ancient Roman units

• Roman inch (uncia) (length)
• Roman cubit (length)
• Roman pace (length)
• Roman stadium (length)
• Roman mile (length)
• Roman league (length)
• Roman pound (libra) (weight & mass)
• Roman ounce (uncia) (weight & mass)
• cyathus (volume)
• sextarius (volume)
• congius (volume)
• modius (volume)
• amphora (volume)
• iugerum (area)
• lustrum (time)
• indiction (time)

All Ancient Roman units

Browse all length units.