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vasseau

A unit of dry capacity, 16ᵗʰ? – 19ᵗʰ centuries, in Belgium and in certain cities in northern France. In this multilingual area the unit had several names: in French, vasseau or vaisseau; in Wallon, vassiau¹; in Flemish vat.

Locale	Equivalents	Comment	Value (liters)
Ath	= ½ rasière	wheat, rye, maslin	28.39
Ath	= ½ rasière	oats, winter barley, marseches²	31.85
Bavay	= ½ rasière	all grains	26.05
Binche	= ½ rasière	all grains	26.15
Boussu	= ½ rasière of Mons	all grains	26.70
Braine-le-Comte	= ½ rasière	all grains	29.50
Chimay	= ¼ rasière	all grains	19.37
Enghien	= ½ rasière		28.80
Fontaine-L'évêque	= ½ rasière	all grains	26.15
Jemmape	= ½ rasière of Mons		26.70
Jumetz		wheat, rye, maslin	26.16
Jumetz		oats, barley, winter barley	28.34
Lessines	= ½ rasière		30.00
Maubeuge		all grains	19.37
Mons	= ½ rasière	all grains	26.70
Mons		salt	38.62
Nivelles	= ½ rasière small measure	wheat, rye, peas, broad beans	20.32
Nivelles	large measure	barley, oats, rape, salt, charcoal	28.96
Quiévrain	= ½ rasière of Mons		26.70
Soignes	= ½ rasière	wheat, rye, maslin	29.66
Soignes	= ½ rasière	oats, barley, winter barley	32.61
Teralphene			20.90
Thuin	= ½ rasière		34.34
Valenciennes	= ½ mencaudée		25.00

Most data from Doursther (1840, page 569).

1. Philibert Delmotte.
Essai d'un Glossaire Wallon, que peut servir à déucontier, que...
1812.
Reprinted Brussels: Editions Culture et Civilisation, 1981.

Godefroy, volume 8, page 138, lists for Wallon the spellings wacha, vassau and vassiau.

2. Two-row barley sown in the Spring. The definition is found in Godefroy (volume 5, page 186), under the entry “marseizes.” He cites a dictionary of agricultural terms published in 1809.