Symbols The Attic numerals used the following main symbols, with the given values: The symbols representing 50, 500, 5000, and 50000 were composites of an old form of the capital letter
pi (with a short right leg) and a tiny version of the applicable power of ten. For example, 𐅆 was five times one thousand.
Special symbols The fractions "one half" and "one quarter" were written "𐅁" and "𐅀", respectively. The symbols were slightly modified when used to encode amounts in
talents (with a small capital
tau, "Τ") or in
staters (with a small capital
sigma, "Σ"). Specific numeral symbols were used to represent one
drachma ("𐅂") and ten
minas "𐅗".
The symbol for 100 The use of "Η" (capital
eta) for 100 reflects the early date of this numbering system. In the Greek language of the time, the word for a hundred would be pronounced (with a "rough aspirated" sound /h/) and written "ΗΕΚΑΤΟΝ", because "Η" represented the sound /h/ in the Attic alphabet. In later, "classical" Greek, with the adoption of the Ionic alphabet throughout the majority of Greece, the letter eta had come to represent the long e sound while the rough aspiration was no longer marked. It was not until
Aristophanes of Byzantium introduced the various accent markings during the Hellenistic period that the
spiritus asper began to represent /h/, resulting in the spelling .
Simple multiples of powers of ten Multiples 1 to 9 of each power of ten were written by combining the two corresponding "1" and "5" digits, namely: Unlike the more familiar Roman numeral system, the Attic system used only the so-called "additive" notation. Thus, the numbers 4 and 9 were written
ΙΙΙΙ and
ΠΙΙΙΙ, not
ΙΠ and
ΙΔ.
General numbers In general, the number to be represented was broken down into simple multiples (1 to 9) of powers of ten — units, tens, hundred, thousands, etc.. Then these parts would be written down in sequence, from largest to smallest value. For example: • 49 = 40 + 9 = ΔΔΔΔ + ΠΙΙΙΙ =
ΔΔΔΔΠΙΙΙΙ • 2001 = 2000 + 1 = ΧΧ + I =
ΧΧΙ • 1982 = 1000 + 900 + 80 + 2 = Χ + 𐅅ΗΗΗΗ + 𐅄ΔΔΔ + ΙΙ =
Χ𐅅ΗΗΗΗ𐅄ΔΔΔΙΙ • 62708 = 60000 + 2000 + 700 + 8 = 𐅇Μ + ΧΧ + 𐅅ΗΗ + ΠΙΙΙ =
𐅇ΜΧΧ𐅅ΗΗΠΙΙΙ. ==Unicode==