The Mayan Numbering System

The Mayan Numbering System

Rather than a system of math based on the number ten digits (like we use today), the Maya used a base number of 20. They also used representations of bars and dot as a record of counting. A dot stood for one and a bar stood for five. Interestingly, the Maya were the earliest known culture to have a concept of "zero" that they actually applied to their sciences and maths.
Here is a brief breakdown of their numbering system:

0	1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14

Because the base of the number system was 20, larger numbers were written down in powers of 20. We do something similar in our decimal system, too: for example 32 is 3 x 10 + 2. In the Maya system, this would be 1 x 20 + 12 with 20 as the base.
So for the Maya, calculations became a quick and easy system of counting, or subtracting dots and bars. Maya traders often used cocoa beans as symbols to represent the various quantities of items of value.

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