FIGURE 1. The 'instruction manual'.
From the following article:
Calendars with Olympiad display and eclipse prediction on the Antikythera Mechanism
Tony Freeth, Alexander Jones, John M. Steele & Yanis Bitsakis
Nature 454, 614-617(31 July 2008)
doi:10.1038/nature07130
Previously identified inscriptions1, 6 reveal remnants of an instruction manual, describing the Mechanism's cycles, dials and functions, as seen in two examples from the Mechanism's back door. a, Polynomial texture mapping of fragment 19 shows fine surface detail, with text about 2 mm high. Highlighted in red are "76 years, 19 years" for the Callippic and Metonic cycles (Supplementary Box 1), and "223", for the Saros cycle (Supplementary Box 2). b, X-ray CT of fragment E reveals text about 2 mm high. Highlighted are "on the spiral subdivisions 235", confirming the Metonic dial (Supplementary Box 1); and "excluded days 2
", the final "K" presumably standing for the number 20—part of the 22 excluded days round each of the five turns of the Metonic calendar—though "B" that would complete "KB" (22) remains speculative.
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