Wasn't the official definition of the meter also tied to Paris?
The invention of the meter is indeed tied to Paris. The value of the meter
itself is not.
The meter was defined by scientists commissioned by the French revolutionary
assembly, but it is not exactly "tied to Paris." The original definition was
1/10,000,000 of a quarter of the Earth circumference, and the commission of
scientists established the value by measuring an arc of the earth circumference
between North of France and North of Spain. The unit was then materialized by a
big platinum ruler kept in a locker in Paris. It is now defined in relation to
the speed of light, itself set as 299,792,458 meters per second.
-- Christian Huitema
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