Discuss the contributions of the Rhind papyrus and the Moscow papyrus to the development of

mathematics.
Rhind papyrus which is also known as the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus is is one of the best known
examples of Egyptian mathematics. It was found at Thebes in the ruins of a small building near the
Ramesseum. It was purchased in 1858 by A. Henry Rhind, a Scottish Egyptologist and after his death, the
papyrus came into the possession of the British Museum.

The papyrus, written in hieratic, the cursive form of hieroglyphics, is a single roll, which was
originally about 5.4 meters long by 32 cms wide (~18 feet by 13 inches), but it came to the British
Museum broken apart, and with a number of fragments missing, the most important of which have
been found in the possession of the New York Historical Society. The papyrus is actually a copy that was
made by a scribe named A'h-mosè, commonly called Ahmes by modern writers.

The Moscow Mathematical Papyrus is also an ancient Egyptian mathematical papyrus. It is called
as the Golenishchev Mathematical Papyrus, after its first owner outside of Egypt, Egyptologist Vladimir
Golenishchev. Golenishchev bought the papyrus in 1892 or 1893 in Thebes. Today, the document is
housed in the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow. It is one of a half dozen well-known
Mathematical Papyri with the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus. The Moscow Mathematical Papyrus is older
than the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus, while the latter is the larger of the two. The Rhind Papyrus has
been dated to about 1650 B.C. and there is only one older mathematical papyrus, the Moscow Papyrus
dated 1850 B.C

These two papyrus give a lot of contribution to the development of mathematics, especially in
arithmetic, algebra and geometry. For instance, in the Rhind Mathematical Payrus, the structure of the
papyrus, with indication of groups of problems classified by subject such as the first part of the Rhind
papyrus consists of reference tables and a collection of 21 arithmetic and 20 algebraic problems. The
problems start out with simple fractional expressions, followed by completion (sekem) problems and
more involved linear equations.

Most problems of the Rhind papyrus are concerned with daily matters of economic activities,
such as farming, baking, brewing, and the distribution of goods. For example, in Problem 40 which is
about an administrative exercise of bread distribution, the problem is based on mathematical
techniques described in the preceding sections of the papyrus, in particular tecniques of calculation with
fractions.

With the exception of 2/3 and, in some limited cases, 3/4 , any Egyptian fraction denotes the
inverse of an integer. In the standard notation introduced by Neugebauer in [1926], the overbar denotes
inversion (indicated by r “part” in hieroglyphs) and the special sign for 2/3 is transcribed as 3. A multiple
of a fraction is expressed by a sum of Egyptian fractions in descending order of magnitude, as largely
displayed in the so-called “2 : n table” in the Opening section of the Rhind papyrus, which shows the
division of 2 by odd numbers from 3 to 101.

Other problems in the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus is Problems 24–27 and 31–34, which
concern in the calculation of an unknown quantity, which is also known as Problems of aha “quantity”.
The etymology of aha “quantity,” from the Old Kingdom term aha “pile,” may be indicative of early
practical exemplifications making use of a number of objects, to be assembled in piles.

According to Imhausen (2003), the interpretation of the aha problems as modern equations,
based on an improper substitution of the unknown “x”for the term aha, is anachronistic and misleading.
The algorithmic structure of a problem text in Egyptian mathematics is befittingly highlighted by a tool
proposed by Ritter (1989), which has been applied to the main sources by Imhausen (2003). An analysis
of the aha problems in the Rhind papyrus and other sources makes it possible to identify various
algorithms used for their solution.

Meanwhile, in Problems 31-34, the sum of the coefficient 1 of the unknown quantity and several
fractions of it assigned as data is divided into the required sum. For example, in Problem 32, a quantity,
its third, and its fourth are required to add up to 2, and the solution is the division of 2 by 134. In this
two-steps algorithm, consisting of an addition and a division, the execution of the division is usually
particularly awkward. The procedure is different when the unknown quantity is added to only one
fraction of itself (Problems 24–27). In this case, the so-called “method of false position” is used. A “false”
value is guessed for the aha “quantity,” and then the sum of this value and its fractional quantity divided
into the required sum yields a factor, by which the “false” aha is finally multiplied to find the solution.
The necessary operations are executed in sequential order, step by step.

The Moscow Mathematical Papyrus was broken down into 25 problems by W.W. Struve in 1930,
although other formats are in existence (Clagett, 1999). Several of the problems are unreadable or
unclear, but they seem to be of the same type as found in the Rhinds Mathematical Papyrus. For
instance, in the Problem 14, the truncated pyramid, is probably studied more than any other problem
on this papyrus. A truncated pyramid has a square base, and it tapers to a square top. In other words, a
normal pyramid with the top cut off. According to Turaeff, the curator of the Moscow Museum in 1917
who was the first to analyze some contents of the papyrus, he believed that the Egyptians used a
ℎ
formula to find the volume. In modern terms, it would be 𝑉 = (3 ) (𝑎2 + 𝑎𝑏 + 𝑏 2 ), where h is the

height, and a and b are the sides of the corresponding squares. Clearly, it is shown in Problem 14,
Egyptians knew how to solve the volume given any parameters.

Conclusion

Both Rhind and Moscow papyrus are one of the greatest of egyption contribution to the world. Hence,
we who are living in the present must learn to appreciate these contributions to the world and strive
really hard so that many discoveries in mathematics can achieved as has been done by the scholars in
the past.