Explorations in Bible lands during the 19th century - H. V. Hilprecht

DURING 19 CENTURY: ASSYRIA AND BABYLONIA 531
space here at my disposal it is impossible to give examples
even of those branches of Babylonian literature which are
written on tablets already examined.
In order to illustrate by one example the important role
which arithmetic played, I call attention to the fact that
about 2300 b. c. the temple library owned a complete set
of multiplication tables from 1 to at least 1350. The mere
circumstance that they existed, sometimes in several copies,
speaks volumes for the height of that ancient civilization.
They doubtless were used constantly in connection with
astronomical calculations, somewhat according to the manner
of our logarithmic tables.
Among the texts of this class
which attracted mv attention are the multiplication tables
2x1,3x1,4x1,5x1 ( two copies ),
6x1,8x1,9x1,12x1 (two copies),
24 x 1, 25 x 1, 40 x 1, 60 x 1, 90 x 1,
45O X I, 75O X I, IOOOX I, 135OX I.
As a rule thev contain the multiplications
of all the consecutive numbers
from 1
to 19, followed by those
of the tens from 20 to 50. At the
end of most of the tablets we find a
catch-line. Thus, e. g. y
the multiplication
table 750 x 1
has the catchline
"720x1=720," thereby indicating
that all the multiplication
tablets from 720 to 750 (probably
even to 780) were classified in the
Multiplication Table
/ X 6 = 6
librarv as one series, known under the name " Series 720
X I.
There are three different ways in which these tables are
written. The following abbreviated specimens may serve as
examples —
: