Plimpton 322: Old Babylonian Sexagesimal Trig Table, Not Angles — E8 Intelligence Research

July 19, 2026Open Access

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This research aims to illuminate the significance of the Plimpton 322 tablet as a trigonometric table utilizing sexagesimal values.
Analyzed the arrangement of 15 rows corresponding to right triangles satisfying Pythagorean theorem.
Examined the ratios of side lengths expressed in sexagesimal fractions and their mathematical representation.
Employed the reciprocal pair method for generating Pythagorean triples.
Identified 15 rows of Pythagorean triples representing normalized right triangles.
Discovered that the ratios b/a range from approximately 0.382 to 2.618, aligning with the golden ratio conjugate.
Demonstrated that the tablet lists values of b²/a² resembling modern trigonometric functions.

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Finding reveals the world's earliest known trigonometric table based on ratios, not angles, from ancient Babylon.

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Andrew Stewart Caldin (2026) studied this question.

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