> Pebbles representing bijections to wares like sheep (called calculi like in calculus) occur earlier than counting marks and much earlier than anything resembling numbers.
How was this determined? I wouldn't expect that using pebbles this way would leave any distinctive marks or damage or residue on the pebbles that would allow an archaeologist several tens of thousands of years later to tell that was what the pebbles were used for.
How was this determined? I wouldn't expect that using pebbles this way would leave any distinctive marks or damage or residue on the pebbles that would allow an archaeologist several tens of thousands of years later to tell that was what the pebbles were used for.