Our Rabbis taught: If [a circular] town is to be [circumscribed by a] square [the sides must be] drawn in the shape of a square tablet. The Sabbath limits also are then drawn in the shape of a square tablet. When the measurements are taken one should not measure the two thousand cubits from the middle point of the town corner, because, thereby, one loses the corners. One should rather imagine that a square tablet of the size of two thousand cubits by two thousand cubits is applied to each corner diagonally, so that the town gains thereby four hundred cubits in each corner, the Sabbath limits gain eight hundred cubits in each corner, while the town and the Sabbath limits together gain twelve hundred cubits in each corner. This is possible, Abaye explained. in a town of the size of two thousand by two thousand cubits. It was taught: R. Eliezer son of R. Jose stated: The limit of the allotted land beyond the confines of the levitical cities was two thousand cubits. Deducting from these an open space of one thousand cubits, such open space would represent a quarter of the entire area the remainder of which consisted of fields and vineyards. Whence is this deduced? — Raba replied: From Scripture which says. [And the open land,..] from the wall of the city and outward a thousand cubits round about, the Torah has thus enjoined, ‘Surround the city by an open space of one thousand cubits’. ‘Such an open space [it was said] would represent a quarter of the entire area’ — ‘A quarter’! Is it not in fact one [in the neighbourhood] of a half? — Raba replied: The surveyor Bar Adda explained this to me. Such a proportion is possible in the case of a town whose area is two thousand by two thousand cubits. For what is the area of its limits? Sixteen [million square cubits]. What is the area of the corners? Also sixteen [million square cubits]. Deducting [for the open spaces] eight [million square cubits] front the limits, and four [million square cubits] from the corners, to what area would this space amount? To one of twelve [million square cubits]. Would then ‘such an open space represent a quarter’? Is it not in fact more than a third of the entire area? — Take the four [million square cubits] of the town area itself and add to them. Does not this, however, still amount to a third? — Do you imagine that a quadrilateral town was spoken off? No, a circular town was meant. For by how much does the area of a square exceed that of a circle? By one quarter [approximately] — Deduct a quarter from the measurements given and there would remain nine [million square cubits]; and nine [million] represents one quarter of thirty six [million]. Abaye said: This is also possible in the case of a town that has an area of a thousand by a thousand cubits For what are its limits? Eight [million square cubits]. What is the area of the corners? Sixteen [million square cubits].39ᵃᵇᶜᵈᵉᶠᵍʰⁱʲᵏˡᵐⁿᵒᵖᵠʳˢᵗᵘᵛʷˣʸᶻᵃᵃᵃᵇᵃᶜᵃᵈᵃᵉᵃᶠᵃᵍᵃʰᵃⁱᵃʲᵃᵏᵃˡᵃᵐ