Si elle (la korah) était en paille ou en roseaux, on la considère comme si elle était en métal. [R. Yehudah dit ceci. La halakha n'est pas en accord avec lui.] Si elle était tordue, [de sorte qu'un ariach ne pourrait pas se reposer dessus (comme il ne le pourrait pas non plus si elle était ronde)], elle est considérée comme si elle était droite. S'il était rond, il est considéré comme carré. Tout ce qui fait trois tefachim de circonférence est un tefach de largeur. [Autrement dit, quelle est la mesure requise pour une couronne ronde? Quelle que soit la circonférence de trois tefachim— c'est-à-dire, tout ce qui nécessite un cordon de trois tefachim de long pour le contourner —aurait, si carré, une largeur d'un tefach. Car c'est ainsi que nous trouvons avec l'igname (le réservoir) fait par Salomon, à savoir. (I Rois 7:23): "Et il fit l'igname fondue, dix coudées de bord à bord, tout autour… et une ligne de trente coudées entourait le rond-point"— d'où l'on voit que pour chaque coudée de largeur dans le cercle, il y a trois coudées de circonférence.]
Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
היתה של קש ושל קנים – Rabbi Yehuda stated this but the Halakha is not according to him.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
Introduction
This mishnah is a continuation of Rabbi Judah’s words from yesterday’s mishnah. Rabbi Judah held that the cross-beam need not actually be strong enough to support a half-brick.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
עקומה – the small bricks are not able to rest upon it (when it is curved) and similarly when it is round, a small brick cannot rest upon it.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
If [the cross-beam] was made of straw or reeds, we look at it as if it was of metal. If the cross-beam was made of a material which could not hold a half-brick, Rabbi Judah considers it nevertheless as if it was strong enough to do so.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Eruvin
if it has in its circumference: Which is to say, what is the round measurement required to render [the beam] proper? Anything that has in its circumference three handbreadths, which requires a string of three handbreadths to encircle it around, it is known that it has a width (diameter) of one handbreadth, if you divide [it]. As so do we find with the basin that Shlomo made (II Chronicles 4:2), "ten ells from its edge to its edge and five ells of height and a line of thirty ells encircling it around." Hence for every ell in width (diameter), there are three ells in circumference.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
[If it was] curved we look at it as if it were straight. If it was curved, it also could not hold a half-brick. Nevertheless, Rabbi Judah holds that it is valid.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Eruvin
[If it was] round we look at it as if it were square. Whatever has a circumference of three handbreadths has a diameter of one handbreadth. Again, a round cross-beam could not hold a half-brick. However, it still must be wide enough to hold a one handbreadth half-brick. In order for this to be true, it must have a circumference of three handbreadths (the rabbis knew that pi was roughly three to one, and they knew that this was not exact).
