Bakhshali Manuscript Records Zero as a Written Symbol

The Bakhshali manuscript contains hundreds of dot symbols used as placeholders for zero. A.F.R. Hoernle discovered the birch bark text in 1881 near Peshawar in present-day Pakistan. Oxford University carbon dating in 2017 dated the oldest folio to approximately 224–383 CE. The mathematical text covers arithmetic, algebra, and practical calculations, likely used by Buddhist merchants. The dot placeholder predates Brahmagupta's formalization of zero as a number in 628 CE by several centuries and represents the earliest known written record of a zero symbol.