Babylonian numerals
numeral system used in ancient Babylonia
Babylonian cuneiform numerals were written in cuneiform, using a wedge-tipped reed stylus to make a mark on a soft clay tablet which would be exposed in the sun to harden to create a permanent record.
![](http://up.wiki.x.io/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Babylonian_numerals.svg/450px-Babylonian_numerals.svg.png)
The Babylonians, who were famous for their astronomical observations, as well as their calculations (aided by their invention of the abacus), used a sexagesimal (base-60) positional numeral system inherited from either the Sumerian or the Eblaite civilizations.[1] Neither of the predecessors was a positional system (having a convention for which 'end' of the numeral represented the units).
References
change- ↑ Stephen Chrisomalis (2010). Numerical Notation: A Comparative History. p. 247. ISBN 9780521878180.