A REVIEW OF MODERN SURVEYING AND MAPPING TECHNIQUES

Abstract

The earliest measurements were probably made by using some part of the human body, commonly the foot or the forearm. In fact some of the present units of measurement are based on the terms used by men in those days. Of the most ancient civilizations, only Egypt has left much direct evidence of the type of instruments used. For sighting and meridian determination the Egyptians used a plumb bob, which was observed through a slit cut in the end of a palm leaf. For levelling they used a plumb bob suspended from a triangular frame; for right angle measurement - a carpon-ter's square and a type of surveyor's cross called "Groma" and for direct distance measurement-a rope. It is probable that the equipment of the surveyor in the other ancient nations was much the same, although the water level may have been known in China, and the use of cords 2 stretched to form the Pythagorean triangle occured at an early date in India.