I'm not sure whether I am just missing something - on 4a we discuss the Mizbeiach, and conclude that it is made from a combination of 4- and 6-tefach amot. So, when we talk about "10 amot", it is really 58 tefachim instead of 60. However, when we asked why Rabbanan and Rebi Yehuda did not learn from "petach sha'ar he'chatzer" on 2a, we used the 5 amot there to reconcile between the top of the 10 ama mizbeiach, and the 15 ama curtains.

So, my questions, please: are we talking about the same mizbeach? If yes, does this mean that the curtains were actually 2 tefachim short of 15 "conventional" amot? Or when we say "5 amot" do we not mean 5 amot exactly, but rather approximately 5 amot? Otherwise, how I am to understand the way that these fit together.

Many thanks!

Gmar tov

Marc Abrahams, Beit Shemesh, Israel