<I>Tchoty</I>, or Russian Abacus
date: label: date made
content: 1965
notes: label: Description
content: This Russian abacus, or <I>tchoty</I> has a well-finished wooden frame, eight metal rods for carrying the beads, and plastic beads that move along the rods. Seven rods have four red beads, two purple beads, and then another four red beads. The other rod (the fourth from the bottom) has one red bead, two purple beads, and then another red bead. Loose inside the paper box are a small gray slip of paper and a larger beige paper, which appears to be a sales receipt.
label: Description
content: This abacus was purchased in August 1965 by George W. Sims of California. Sims, who was born in about 1898, was a tax collector, certified public accountant, world traveller, and collector. Handwritten notations on the cardboard box in which the instrument was received indicate when it was purchased and state that it came from Smolensk in the Russian SSR, and cost the equivalent of 61 American cents. Documentation received in the same accession as the abacus (1988.0489.02) relates to the Chinese abacus, not this one.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: Place Made
content: Russia: Smolenskaya Oblast’, Smolensk
topic: label: Subject
content: Mathematics
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
label: See more items in
content: Abacus
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content: Science & Mathematics
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of George W. Sims
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1988.0489.01
label: catalog number
content: 1988.0489.01
label: accession number
content: 1988.0489
objectType: label: Object Name
content: abacus
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 4.6 cm x 13 cm x 19.5 cm; 1 13/16 in x 5 1/8 in x 7 11/16 in