[accessibleimage] quipu and Braille

Hi,

Awhile ago I was thinking about a mapping system based on the Inca's knot
language - quipu. I vaugly remember that they used it for wayfinding. And
I thought about it used together with a mapping system using braille I had
posted earlier.
I tried to find some reference about how quipu worked and mostly came up
with they were still unsure and likely mostly used for accounting. 
Today I was going through a book about the Salvation Armys' work with the
blind and deaf in Norway when I came accross a passage in the book telling
about an article from the Norwegian Salvations Army's own magazine from
1979 telling that

 "the first book for the blind was made from a long string"  and "words
and letters where decided by the size of the knots and distance between "
and "the idea of this writing form came from Mexico and was taken up with
great interest in England at the begining of the 1700s. A large part of
the Bible was published with this system. The system however was difficult
and and the writing for the blind could hardly be seen as solved".  

The author of the book adds a correction that the system comes from Peru
and not Mexico.

The passage is from Tegnet i Hendene (Drawn in hands) by Nils-Petter
Enstad published by Genesis 2001 

Question is is anyone familiar or heard of this system used in England? Or
anything related?

Regards,
Lisa




Lisa Yayla
Huseby Kompetansesenter 
Oslo Norway
lisa.yayla@xxxxxxxxxx

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