# The khipus of the American Museum of Natural History read by Locke

> The museum's khipus, from which Locke showed that the knots on pendant cords record decimal numbers.

Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/khipu/artifacts/ART0D4V8AKG3V9T/the-khipus-of-the-american-museum-of-natural-history-read-by  
Publisher: Mysteries Department  
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page)  

---

[Mysteries](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries)[Inka khipus: the knotted-cord records](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/khipu)[Artifacts](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/khipu#artifacts)The khipus of the American Museum of Natural History read by Locke

**ART** 0D4V8AKG3V9T·Artifact · object

# The khipus of the American Museum of Natural History read by Locke

Document13 pagesPublic domainInka period; published 1912

[Cite][Download](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/d/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6)

[Pages][Text]Page 1 of 13

[![Page 1](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p1)1][![Page 2](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p2)2][![Page 3](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p3)3][![Page 4](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p4)4][![Page 5](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p5)5][![Page 6](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p6)6][![Page 7](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p7)7][![Page 8](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p8)8][![Page 9](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p9)9][![Page 10](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p10)10][![Page 11](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p11)11][![Page 12](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p12)12]

![Page 1 of The khipus of the American Museum of Natural History read by Locke](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6/p1)

The first 12 pages are shown; the rest are in the file. Text taken from the file. Check it against the page.

The museum's khipus, from which Locke showed that the knots on pendant cords record decimal numbers.

L. Leland Locke, 1912. Public domain

## Copies 1

**Document** L. Leland Locke · archive.org · 1912 · Public domainPrimary source: [The Ancient Quipu, a Peruvian Knot Record](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D4V7PTP1WR9/the-ancient-quipu-a-peruvian-knot-record)1 step from the original

[Where it's published](https://archive.org/details/jstor-659935)[Download](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/d/d1ded5360e9c2a1259107514595efdd7208ebca07c8188e6979c6e7bf24c8cb6)

## Where it is kept

[American Museum of Natural History, New York](https://mysteriesdept.com/records/PLC0D4V7VYR5FH0/american-museum-of-natural-history-new-york) · Museum

## Sources 1

- [The Ancient Quipu, a Peruvian Knot Record](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D4V7PTP1WR9/the-ancient-quipu-a-peruvian-knot-record)_SRC_

## Cite it

```
Mysteries Department. (2026). The khipus of the American Museum of Natural History read by Locke [Artifact ART0D4V8AKG3V9T]. https://mysteriesdept.com/r/ART0D4V8AKG3V9T
```

Key

**ART** 0D4V8AKG3V9T

Kind

Object

Held by

American Museum of Natural History, New York

Dated

Inka period; published 1912

Licence

Public domain

Place

[American Museum of Natural History, New York](https://mysteriesdept.com/records/PLC0D4V7VYR5FH0/american-museum-of-natural-history-new-york)

Part of

[Inka khipus: the knotted-cord records](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/khipu)

The record

Every record is open data. Take this one as JSON, with its links and its history.

[JSON](https://mysteriesdept.com/api/v1/records/ART0D4V8AKG3V9T)