We discover that the original ‘39 steps’ belonged to a nursing home in Broadstairs, and that the first attempt to codify football’s rules, in 1848, omitted to mention that there should be only 11 men per team. Not only is Rogerson’s grasp of great religions compelling, so is his sense of fun. They include ‘I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.’
Equally intriguing are the most commonly expressed regrets of the dying (5 apparently). Here are entries for the different names for Jerusalem (700) the positions described in the Kama Sutra (64), and Don Giovanni’s sexual conquests (1,003). Even when the theme strays from significant numbers to significant quantities, it can still make you gasp. We learn about I-Ching and the ancient Chinese search for the meaning in numbers, and about abjad, the Arabian pseudo-science of substituting numbers for letters. This little volume is a tightly-packed hamper of intellectual treats. Meanwhile, there’s a lot to get one’s teeth into. The Guaraní (of Paraguay), for example, couldn’t care less about numbers, and have no word for any number greater than 5 (which is po, or ‘a hand’). It will be interesting to see his take on the tribal cultures of Africa and the Americas. Although a great traveller and polymath, he focuses in this edition on Europe, Asia and the Arab world. No doubt more disparities will emerge as Rogerson casts the net wider (there are hints of ongoing work). 666 also happens to be the sum of all the numbers on a roulette wheel. Likewise, in Christendom, 666 is the ‘mark of the beast’, whereas, in Chinese, it’s the tonal equivalent of ‘things go smoothly’. So it is that, in China, 4 is unlucky (it sounds like ‘death’) whereas, in the West, it’s 13 (both Napoleon and FDR refused to sit at tables of 13). But the dearth of common themes demonstrates the sheer illogicality of significant numbers. There are a few obvious ones like 10 (thanks to our fingers) and 365 (our trip round the sun). It is, however, rare to find numbers that are significant across different cultures. But there are also a few surprises like 56, which is much-favoured by the builders of columns (Stonehenge, Tiananmen Square and Washington’s National War Memorial). All the big hitters are there, like 40 (a recurring figure in Semitic religions) and 12 (the astrologer’s staple). Laid out like a miniature encyclopaedia, Rogersons’s beautifully crafted references take us from the millions down to zero. Now, thanks to Rogerson’s Book of Numbers we have a delicious collection of the world’s holiest, most significant and wackiest integers. BBC’s Huw Edwards in hot water after blasting ‘feeble’ journalistĪnd, boy, have we humans spent time giving meaning to numbers.
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