24 January 2012

A Gill Is Not Always For a Fish



"1 Broken Mug one Gill Cup One bowl"

Some readers might wonder what type of cup a "gill cup" is. The gill is referring to the size of the cup, not some special design or anything else. A gill is a unit of measure equal to one half cup.

This image comes from Harford County, Maryland, Estate Inventories 1777-1804, page 270--the estate inventory of Ann Gibson. I'm working on typing the entire estate for an upcoming Casefile Clues issue. The inventory of Ann's chattel estate is interesting. Often googling items will help with interpretations.

Estate inventories are great fun.