Columella's discussion of land measurement in Book 5 of the Res rustica does more than explain how to calculate the areas of variously shaped fields. This geometrical excursus allows the author to delimit and transgress the boundaries of res rustica by injecting practical handbook mathematics into his otherwise highbrow manual, whose audience comprises both the practical farmer and the leisured litterateur. Columella displays his mastery of all aspects of agriculture while simultaneously elevating the literary status of geometrical calculation, creating a text that is technical yet transcends generic constraints.
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