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Japanese abacus
- Thread starter Johnwa
- Start date
Just to be fair, the reason we see the India/Pakistan videos is because those videos get views. India/Pakistan/China/Viet Nam folks are just as smart, capable, and skilled as anyone else. We just don't want to pay for their skills. So it's easy to criticize their working conditions when you only see the cheap shit.
The antelope statue was cast on China 3100 years ago. About the same time my English ancestors were running around nude, painting themselves blue using plant juice, and worshiping trees.
The exuberant woman with hollow arms was cast in India around 200-800 AD.
Several years ago I was in Tokyo and went to the street (there is an entire street) with shops that are making chisels and wood planes. I was amazed how primitive and archaic their shops and processes. Master just sitting on the floor, holding workpiece with his legs while hitting with hammer. Posture of the man is unnatural to say at least. Kiln works on coal - sometimes on brown coal - smell is just terrible. Overall process is deadly monotonous .
I wasn't impressed at all... later I was told that this is tradition and skills that passed for generation... anyway.
I wasn't impressed at all... later I was told that this is tradition and skills that passed for generation... anyway.
mickeyf
Super User
When I saw the title of this thread, I though it would be about using a Soroban, not how they are made. I have one (along with some elderly slide rules) and sorta "got into it" many years back. For simple calculations they can be faster than a calculator. It's basically muscle memory, like playing a musical instrument. After enough practice it's quicker to flick the beads than to press the keys on a hand held calculator - which explains the fact that they are still in wide use and being produced in the quantities shown in the video. (But today I do mostly just use a calculator!)