Quipu

Quipu, the language of knotted cords which was used by the Incas of Peru previous to the conquest of their country by the Spaniards. A series of knotted strings was fastened at one end to a stout cord; the other ends hung free. This was used for the purpose of conveying commands to officers in the provinces, and even for recording historic annals. The colours of the strings and the order of their arrangement, the character and number of the knots, their distance from the cord to which they were connected, and the methods of their interlacing were the principal elements in this 'knotty language.'