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The ancient Mesopotamians used simple algebraic procedures to solve practical problems, such as calculating the area of a field or the volume of a vessel. Much of what is known today about Mesopotamian mathematics comes from the tablets that teachers used to instruct their students. This particular tablet (written in Sumerian) served as a mathematical "textbook" containing 247 problems with the answers omitted. For each problem, the area of a field is given and the student must determine its length and width with a quadratic equation.

 Hieroglyphic Luwian Inscription

Name: Mathematical "Textbook"

Material: Clay

Size:
Length: 7.5 cm (2.95 in)
Width: 7.0 cm (2.75 in)
Depth: 1.6 cm (0.63 in)

Date: 1800–1600 BCE

Place of Origin: Unknown

Location: Oriental Institute Museum, Chicago, Illinois

Source and Registration#: Oriental Institute Museum. A24194
Link to resource (accessed May 13, 2010).

Christopher Woods

Associate Professor of Sumerology, University of Chicago