Archaeologists in China have discovered bamboo sheets more than 2,000 years old, revealing the ancient roots of modern mathematics.
On site Archaeological From Chenjiazui, Archaeologists They discovered multiplication formulas that are considered the oldest recorded to date.
The National Chinese Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) issued a press release stating that the discovery occurred in Jingzhou City, located in Hubei Province, China.
While excavating a tomb in Qingyazui, Discover Bamboo sheets date back to the Warring States Period (475 BC – 221 BC), a period marked by conflicts between seven warring states, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and the consolidation of power.
Before the widespread adoption of paper, the main writing media in China were bamboo and wood sheets. Overall, each painting presented a single column of brush text, containing many ancient Chinese characters of great visual complexity.
These strips of wood or bamboo, described as being as long as one stick and as wide as two, are often bound together with hemp thread, silk, or leather to form folding books known as “jians” or “jiandu.”
To date, 3,910 slides have been cataloged at Chenjiazui, and an additional 1,200-1,500 slide collection is expected to be processed, making it one of the largest Discoveries The most important ancient texts in China.
The paintings cover a wide range of subjects, including mathematics, medicine, livestock, literature, etc., and some contain the oldest known example of a multiplication table and algebra known as a “jiujioshu.”
“This is important,” the researchers say Discovery “Offers invaluable new resources for the study of the history, culture, and ideologies prevalent during the pre-Qin period.”
the Archaeologists They continue to catalog the prints and will conduct infrared scanning and other preservation methods, with the aim of displaying them to the public in the future.
