Reference for Eruvin 173:7
ואלא הא דתניא ר' חנניא בן עקביא אומר גזוזטרא שיש בה ד' אמות על ד"א חוקק בה ד' על ד' וממלא היכי משכחת לה
and for its width to be two handbreadths and two fractions.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Placing the balcony, as in the previous case, in an upright position at a distance of four handbreadths from one of the walls with its side at a distance of less than three handbreadths from the adjacent wall it may he imagined to be bent from top to bottom in the middle towards the wall it was facing and thus closing up all air space of one handbreadth and a fraction and reducing the distance between it and the wall to less than three handbreadths. The space between either wall and the balcony now being less than three handbreadths is (by the law of labud) deemed to be non-existent and a hole of four handbreadths by four now remains surrounded on two adjacent sides by the house walls and on the opposite two sides by the imaginary corner piece which, by the law of labud, constitutes two valid partitions that stretch downwards to the water, all the four sides enclosing a private domain between the balcony and the water.');"><sup>18</sup></span> With reference, however, to what was taught: R'Hananya B'Akabya ruled: 'In a balcony that has an area of four cubits by four he cuts a hole of four handbreadths by four and may draw water through it', in what circumstances could this<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' That the balcony should be required to have an area of no less than twenty-four handbreadths by twenty-four.');"><sup>19</sup></span> be possible?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' In view of the devices just described, whereby a private domain may be formed even where the balcony was smaller than the prescribed minimum (of ten handbreadths by four) for each of its four sides and (four handbreadths by four) for the hole.');"><sup>20</sup></span>