Page 17 - The Pocket Guide to Outdoor Knots
P. 17
Knotted cords have been used in many primitive cultures— from the Arctic
to the South Pacific—to keep track of dates, events and genealogies; to recount
folklore and legends (by means of the string figures known as cat’s cradles); to
serve as mnemonic cues in prayer or confession; and to record trading
transactions and inventories. Inca administrators, Hawaiian tax-gatherers,
American Indians, Polynesians and ancient Hebrews, all used knots in lieu of
written accounts. The rosary and the abacus probably evolved from knotted
cords.
