A DICTIONARY
OP
GREEK AND ROMAN ANTIQUITIES.
ABACUS.
AB'ACUS (aSa^) denoted generally and primarily a s(|uare talilot of any material. Hence we find it applicil in the following special signifi- cations : —
I. In Architectnre it denoted the flat square stone, which constituted the highest member of a colnmn, Jieing placed immediately under the archi- trave. The annexed tignre is drawn from that in the liritish Museum, wiiich was taken from the Partlu'uon at Athens, and is a perfect specimen of the capital of a Doric column.
In the more ornamented orders of arcliitecture, sucli as the Corinthian, the sides of the abacus were curved inwards, and a rose or some other decoration was frequently placed in the middle of each side ; but the name Abacus was given to the stone thus diversified and enriched, as well as in its original form. (Vitruv. iii. 3 ; iv. 1 . 7.)
II. The diminutive Abaculiis (d&ci(ci'cr«:os) denoted a tile of marble, glass, or any other sub- stance used for making ornamental pavements.
Pliny, in his account of glass, says (//. A'", xxxvi. 67), " It is artificially stained as in making the small tiles, which some persons call abaculi." Moschion says, that tlie magnificent ship built by Archimedes for Iliero, king of Syracuse, contained a pavement made of such tiles of various colours and materials. (AaTreSoc iv d§aKi(rKois (TvyKiijiivov fK TravTOLUv i6av. Apud Athen. v. 207.)
III. Abacus was also employed in Architecture to denote a panel, coffer, or square compartment in the wall or ceiling of a chamber. As panels are intended for variety and ornament, they were enriched with painting. (Plin. H. N. xxxiii. 5G ; XXXV. lis.) Pliny, in describing the progress of luxury with respect to the decoration of apart- ments, says, that the Romans were now no longer
ABACUS.
satisfied with panels («o« plcmr/i jam abaci), and were beginning even to paint upon marble.
(//. N.XXXY. 1.)
IV. AiiAfiis further denoted a wooden tray, i. e. a square board surrounded liy a raised border. This may have been the article intended by Cato, when in his enumeration of the tilings necessary in furnishing a fiirm (oHvetum), he mentions " one abacus." {De Be Bust. 10.)
Such a tray would be useful for various pur- poses. (See Cratin. Fracj. edit. Runkel, p. 27 ; Pollux, vi. 90 ; x. 105 ; Bekker, Anec. Or. i. 27.) It might very well be used for making bread and confectionary ; and hence the name of abacus (dSa^, d.§ai{iov) was given to the fiaKTpa, i. c. tlie board or tray for kneading dough. (Ilesych. sub McsKrpa : Sdiol. in Theocr. iv. 61.)
V. A tray of the same description, covered with sand or dust, was used by mathematicians for drawing diagrams. (Eustath. in Od. i. 107. p. 13,97.)
VI. It is evident that this contrivance would be no less serviceable to the arithmetician : and to this application of it Pcrsius (.SV(/. i. 131) alludes, when he censures the man wlio ridiculed " the nmnbers on the abacus and the partitions in its divided dust." Abaco numfros, ct secto in pulrcre metas. In this instance the poet seems to have supposed perpendicular lines or channels to have been drawn in the sand upon the board ; and the instrament might thus in the simplest and easiest manner be adapted for arithmetical computation.
It appears that tiie same purpose was answered by having a similar tray with perpendicular wooden divisions, the space on the right hand being intended for units, the next space for tens, the next for hundreds, and so on. Thus was con- structed the dSaKiov, if o5 f/r](l>l^ov(nv, " the abacus on which they calculate," i. e. reckon by the use of stones (^ipi^cpot, calculi). (Eustath. in Oi-L iv. 249. p. 1494.) The figure following is de- signed to represent the probable form and appear- ance of siich an abacus.
Na-agụ ga-edebe, na nkume mgbe enwere ike itinye nkume n'akụkụ aka nri- tion ruo mgbe ha ruru 10, mgbe ọ ga- ọ dị mkpa ịwepụ ha niile dị ka egosipụtara na ọnụ ọgụgụ na kama ha itinye otu nkume n'ime nkebi na-esote. Nkume dị na N'otu aka ahụ nkewa a nwere ike ịbụ 10, si otú a na-anọchi anya 10 X 10 = 100, mgbe ọ ga-abụ dị mkpa ka Uike si 10, na kama ha itinye otu nkume n'ime nkebi nke atọ, na ihe ndị ọzọ.
