As a unit of length, the klafter was derived from the span of a man's outstretched arms and was traditionally about 1.80 metres. In Austria, its length was, for example, 1.8965 m, in Prussia 1.88 m. In Bavaria, however, a klafter was only 1.751155 m, in Hesse it was significantly larger at 2.50 m. The Viennese or Lower Austrian klafter was fixed by Rudolf II as a measure of length as of 19 August 1588. When, in 1835, the Swiss units were defined using the metric system, 1 Swiss klafter corresponded exactly to 1.80 m. In Aachen, Baden, Bavaria, Bohemia, Hamburg, Leipzig, Poland, Trier and Zurich the klafter was exactly six feet, but in the Canton of Freiburg it measured 10 feet. In nautical units of depth, the klafter corresponds to the fathom.
Baseline
The survey of Austria-Hungary began in 1762 with the construction of the Vienna Neustadt Baseline which was 6,410, later 5,000, klafters long, represented by 5 measuring rods of 1 klafter in length made of varnished wood.
Unit of volume
The old unit of dry volume for split firewood, or Scheitholz, was based on this unit of length. A klafter of wood corresponded to a stack of wood with a length and height of one klafter; the depth of this pile corresponded to the length of the log but, as a rule was 3 feet long, that is 0.5 klafters. The volume of a pile of logs was therefore only 0.5 cubic klafters. This in turn corresponded, depending on the area, to 3 to 4 steres or approximately 2 to 3 m³ of wood. The old Prussian klafter corresponded to 3.339 m³; in Austria, a klafter was equivalent to 3.386 m³. By comparison the North Americancord, used to measure firewood and pulpwood, is slightly larger at 3.62 m³. In Switzerland, Werdenfelser Land and parts of Lower Franconia, a klafter of logs corresponds to 3,000 m³ of stacked firewood since the introduction of the metric system. Usually the logs are 1 m long. One klafter of firewood is thus equivalent to about 2.2 m³. Hay was also sometimes measured in klafters in the 19th century. The cubic klafter was not standardised as the length of a foot varied depending on the region. The cubic klafter used for wood could also differ. Here is an example of the Austrian units..
The Rahmklafter, as the unit of timber measurement was called in Austria, was defined for long and short firewood as follows:
1 Rahmklafterof long firewood = 6 feet long and 6 feet high, 1 1/4 ells of log length, about 111 cubic feet
1 Rahmklafterof short firewood = 6 feet long and 6 feet high, 1 ell of log length, about 90 cubic feet
Two klafters were counted for one Stoß or livestock unit.
Unit of area
In Austria, 1 yoke comprised 1,600 square klafters with sides measuring 8 by 200 klafters, thus about 5,754 m² and 0.575 ha, respectively. 1 square klafter was equivalent to 3.5979 square metres. In the Swiss Chur Rhine Valley and the Prättigau, the meadowland was measured in klafters. In the adjoining Principality of Liechtenstein, the square klafter is still used today for the measurement of land areas. 1 m² equals 0.27804 square klafters, 1 square klafter equals 3.59665 m². The klafter as a unit of length was consequently about 1.8965 metres long. In Darmstadt, 1 square klafter = 100 square feet = 10,000 square inches = 6.25 square metres.
