Rhind Mathematical Papyrus/The Trustees of the British Museum
The Ahmes Papyrus, often referred to as the Rhind Papyrus after its first owner, was first unearthed in the mid–nineteenth century CE in Thebes and is currently housed in the British Museum. This papyrus is dated to 1550 BCE, and it is possible to date it very precisely because the text mentions the time of its creation: the thirty-third year of King Apophis's reign. The chronology of King Apophis's reign is reasonably well-known to scholars.
However, the contents of this scroll predate this period significantly as the Rhind Papyrus is essentially a copy of a well-known mathematical and geometric workbook from that era. A scribe named Ahmes transcribed the text, which is written in the hieratic script, a cursive form of hieroglyphic writing. This text closely resembles modern mathematical ones—with one difference. Instead of cars going back and forth between point A and point B or pools that never fill up, it features estate managers who continuously divide caravans of bread, sacks of grain, jars of oil, and beer among people. Additionally, they occasionally have to construct granaries and pyramids of specific dimensions. An intriguing problem, labeled Number 79, challenges readers to calculate the exact number of mice and cats in a property with seven houses
(the correct answer is 343 mice and 49 cats).