School tablet

Description

On the one side it contains a table of the simplest of fractions (1/2) and an equally simple multiplication table (2). On the other side an iambic often found on schooltablets is written.;The outer side of the tablet, which originally was the back cover of a book of tablets, is;used for the mathematical tables, which are written along the width of the tablet. This side;was coated with a white layer that has partly come off. Because of that the text is sometimes;barely legible. Four simple vertical lines are used to divide the five columns of text. Another;such line follows the fifth column. Within the text horizontal lines are used to divide certain;portions of text. This is the case between column I 2 and 3, column III 8 and 9, column III;10 and 11 and between the items in the multiplication table at the end of column III. There is;also a vertical line separating the juxtaposed items there.;The inner side of the tablet is used for the maxim, which is written perpendicularly to the;text on the outer side. The coating on this side of the tablet is very well preserved. In this;coating a rectangle was ruled about 1 cm from the lower and right edges of the tablet and;about 1.5 cm from the upper and left edges. This seems to imitate the raised frame of a waxed;tablet. In addition, 20 horizontal lines were ruled in the coating. The first line starts 6 cm be-low;the upper line of the rectangular frame. This leaves a field of 14 x 6 cm into which the;maxim was written. The tail of the rho of "grammata" is written over the first line.