Incorrect Roman Numeral on building.

[OnePCWhiz]

https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/wmZP20_MDCCCCXXII_1922_197_Clarendon_Stephen_L_Brown_Building_Boston_MA?fbclid=IwAR2ViyvGYiD03dIkf9LmwMYGOhxubvZXkzMCCqzOMnFewbeS1lF4b-NO9Gc

 

I just started a job here so I see this every day.

 

What's interesting is this is an invalid Roman Numeral.

 

It should be MCMXXII .

 

Just sayin. :-)

[jonathanatpsu]

That is interesting.  I guess MDCCCCXXII still works out to the same year, but takes up a bit more space.  Perhaps they didn't want any blank space on that part of the building! 

This reminds me of a clock I have with Roman Numerals on its face that has IIII instead of IV for 4.   

[+HHL]

See this:

https://www.deutsches-uhrenmuseum.de/en/museum/knowledge/clock-facts/clock-dials-with-4-iiii-or-iv.html

 

Hans

[+ScroogieII]

11 hours ago, HHL said:

See this:

https://www.deutsches-uhrenmuseum.de/en/museum/knowledge/clock-facts/clock-dials-with-4-iiii-or-iv.html

 

Hans

 

I'm guessing you're about the same age as myself, possibly older, if that's possible. 

It was "Spy vs Spy" that gave you away!

Keith

[+FamilieFrohne]

1 hour ago, ScroogieII said:

I'm guessing you're about the same age as myself, possibly older, if that's possible. 

It was "Spy vs Spy" that gave you away!

Keith

Well ... then I must be old, too. But I really don't feel like I'm old ...

 

BTW: I liked the "Spy vs Spy" strips in the various MAD magazines I've read (in the seventiees, at school time, sometimes even during the lectures ^^ ). But enough of the off-topic stuff ...

[+fi67]

On 11/13/2022 at 8:44 AM, HHL said:

See this:

https://www.deutsches-uhrenmuseum.de/en/museum/knowledge/clock-facts/clock-dials-with-4-iiii-or-iv.html

 

Hans

These reasons are correct, but sometimes there was an additional religious reason to use IIII on church clocks. IV was also the abbrievation of Jove, the main god of the religion the early Christians had to overcome. So they hesitated to use his symbol on a church.

[+Ariberna]

On 11/6/2022 at 5:26 PM, OnePCWhiz said:

https://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/wmZP20_MDCCCCXXII_1922_197_Clarendon_Stephen_L_Brown_Building_Boston_MA?fbclid=IwAR2ViyvGYiD03dIkf9LmwMYGOhxubvZXkzMCCqzOMnFewbeS1lF4b-NO9Gc

 

I just started a job here so I see this every day.

 

What's interesting is this is an invalid Roman Numeral.

 

It should be MCMXXII .

 

Just sayin. :-)

Prove to post this WM in Human Error cathegory :-)

[+The Snowdog]

On 11/6/2022 at 10:26 AM, OnePCWhiz said:

What's interesting is this is an invalid Roman Numeral.

 

It should be MCMXXII .

 

Just sayin. :-)

 

It's not invalid; identical symbols can be repeated as desired. There's a monument in Rome somewhere with twenty-three consecutive "I" symbols.

As long as the result isn't ambiguous, it's just fine.