Wooden abacus "Soroban". 13 vertical wooden poles set in a backed wooden frame with six wooden beads on each. Horizontal dividing strut keeps one of the beads in each column above it. Along the strut is a strip of white bone on which are characters, one above each pole apart from the one on the extreme left and the centre pole. These read, from left to right: ten, ?, ten, ?, one, blank, sun, ten, ?, ten, ? , two. 159 h x 60 w x 14 d.
These objects are only a part of our collections, of which there are more than 350,000 objects. This information comes from our collections database. Some of this is incomplete and there may be errors. This part of the website is also still under construction, so there may be some fields repeated or incorrectly formatted information.
The database retains language taken from historical documents to help research. Please note that some records may feature language and reflect systems of thinking that are outdated and offensive. The database also includes information on objects that are considered secret or sacred by some communities.
If you have any further information about objects in our collections, can suggest corrections to our information or if you see content requiring immediate action, please contact us: enquiry@horniman.ac.uk
