Standard Measures
Cromarty Courthouse Museum

These impressive measuring vessels are the legal standard measures used by the County of Cromarty to ensure that shop keepers, farmers, and other businessmen were maintaining standards and trading legally.

Most of us are familiar with the story of the medieval ‘baker’s dozen’ – where thirteen loaves were sold instead of twelve so that bakers were not punished for selling bread that was under weight. These liquid measures date from a later period, but show the continued importance of ensuring standards when buying and selling.

Made by ‘County of Cromarty’, they provided a standard imperial measure of volume, including: a gallon, half gallon, quart, pint, half pint, and gill.