1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,389
Before alphabets, Mesopotamia counted in clay.

2
00:00:03,389 --> 00:00:07,073
Earlier clay tokens and bullae inspired the signs.

3
00:00:07,073 --> 00:00:13,041
Cuneiform numerals used wedge marks for ones and tens, built on a base‑60 system.

4
00:00:13,041 --> 00:00:18,198
Scribes recorded grain, silver, and rations for temples and merchants.

5
00:00:18,198 --> 00:00:25,271
Early tablets show fixed-value signs; later Babylonians added place value and a spacer for zero.

6
00:00:25,271 --> 00:00:30,354
These numbers timed hours, mapped angles, and powered administration.