History of Hindu Mathematics: A Source Book v1.c7.s8.49

v1.c7.s8.49

The exact date of the invention, however, would be nearer to the 1st century B.C. or even earlier, because for a long time after its invention, the system must have been looked upon as a mere curiosity and used simply for expressing large numbers. A still longer time must have elapsed before the method of performing the operations of