Napier's Bones

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  • Details
  • Description
Date Introduced
1700 ca.
Photographer
Richards, Mark
Dimensions
5/8 x 3 1/4 x 2 1/2 in.
Credit Line
Loan of Gwen and Gordon Bell
Copyright Owner
© Mark Richards
Location
United Kingdom
Keywords
Business; India; Hand calculation
Object ID
B27.79

This was a popular and portable calculation aid that reduced multiplication and division to a series of additions and subtractions. It used a table-based calculation method that probably originated in India in the Middle Ages.