December 13, 2007 02:05PM
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Registered: 18 years ago
Posts: 3,316
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Hello Clive and Graham,
Fair enough, let's get back to Clive's opening statement: "A royal cubit is divided into 28 equal segments, a very peculiar number to use for linear measure”, and his question: “Are there any who know why the ancients elected to divide this sacred measure into 28 parts,... ?”
Methinks we have a rather muddled chicken and egg type situation here.
Was the royal cubit of the 4th Dyn:
a) a single unit of length directly divided into 28 equal parts (known as a digit)?
b) a single unit of length divided into 7 equal parts (known as a palm) which were each divided into 4 equal parts (known as digits) - thus creating a royal cubit divided into 28 digits naturally?
c) the natural product of multiplying a single unit of length (known as digit) by four to create a unit of length known as a palm, and then multiplying the palm (of 4 digits) by 7 - thus creating a royal cubit divided into 28 digits naturally?.
There are variations on these possibilities but let’s not get things more muddled than they already are.
On the royal cubit consisting of 28 digits, Clive writes: ‘… a very peculiar number to use for linear measure”.
But why should this number be deemed peculiar?
The number may strike us as peculiar but to the AEs it may well have been quite mundane.
Is 28 units of length really any more or less peculiar than, say, 36 (the number of inches in a yard), or 25 (the number of links in a rod), or 66 (the number of feet in a chain)?
One thing that is, IMO, clear in the Mathematical Papyri is that though the AEs methods of calculation and use of fractions were comparatively very basic (and very clunky!), they could work with any number they liked – and quite efficiently so.
As far as I can tell there is no strong reason to see the number 28 (in the context of the royal cubit) as anything other than ordinary to the 4th Dyn. AEs.
I am convinced that the original, repeat original, royal cubit was derived from an already existing anthropometrical cubit of 6 palms/24 digits simply by the adding to it of another palm of 4 digits.
What prompted this change remains, for me, unclear – though I keep in mind possible links with the lunar cycle, etc., as broached by Jammer – but I doubt that initially it had anything to do with theoretical mathematics.
As time went by so the mundane royal cubit became, IMO, something more, how shall I say, esoteric than its humble beginnings as a base unit of linear measurement.
MJ
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Clive |
December 04, 2007 08:32PM |
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Dave L |
December 04, 2007 08:35PM |
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Clive |
December 04, 2007 10:28PM |
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C Wayne Taylor |
December 05, 2007 06:10AM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 04:19PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 07:22AM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 08:25AM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 04:26PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 04:42PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 04:48PM |
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L Cooper |
December 05, 2007 05:52PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 10:19PM |
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L Cooper |
December 06, 2007 06:47AM |
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Clive |
December 06, 2007 11:18PM |
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Greg Reeder |
December 07, 2007 12:33PM |
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L Cooper |
December 09, 2007 08:27PM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 08:49PM |
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fmetrol |
December 05, 2007 05:10PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 05:19PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 05:22PM |
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fmetrol |
December 05, 2007 05:30PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 06:13PM |
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fmetrol |
December 06, 2007 06:06PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 05:25PM |
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fmetrol |
December 05, 2007 05:36PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 06:20PM |
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fmetrol |
December 05, 2007 06:47PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 10:22PM |
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Kanga |
December 06, 2007 09:37AM |
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Clive |
December 06, 2007 10:07PM |
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Anthony |
December 04, 2007 09:07PM |
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Clive |
December 04, 2007 11:25PM |
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Sirfiroth |
December 05, 2007 02:28AM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 04:38PM |
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Sirfiroth |
December 05, 2007 11:51PM |
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Clive |
December 06, 2007 01:48AM |
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Sirfiroth |
December 06, 2007 09:28PM |
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Clive |
December 06, 2007 10:45PM |
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Dave L |
December 07, 2007 06:42AM |
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Dave L |
December 06, 2007 10:07AM |
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Sirfiroth |
December 06, 2007 10:29PM |
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Dave L |
December 09, 2007 04:54PM |
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Sirfiroth |
December 11, 2007 06:45PM |
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Sirfiroth |
December 05, 2007 12:31AM |
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C Wayne Taylor |
December 05, 2007 06:20AM |
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cladking |
December 04, 2007 09:18PM |
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Clive |
December 04, 2007 11:31PM |
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Jammer |
December 05, 2007 10:08AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 05, 2007 03:33AM |
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Clive |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 04:51PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 05:04PM |
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Morph |
December 05, 2007 06:22AM |
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fmetrol |
December 05, 2007 06:40AM |
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Morph |
December 08, 2007 06:31AM |
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fmetrol |
December 08, 2007 07:33AM |
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Morph |
December 08, 2007 08:50AM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 07:04PM |
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Jammer |
December 05, 2007 10:19AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 05, 2007 12:30PM |
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Jammer |
December 05, 2007 03:22PM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 05, 2007 03:25PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 03:45PM |
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Kanga |
December 06, 2007 09:51AM |
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Anthony |
December 06, 2007 01:28PM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 06, 2007 06:17PM |
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fmetrol |
December 06, 2007 06:39PM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 06, 2007 06:59PM |
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Kanga |
December 06, 2007 07:51PM |
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fmetrol |
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Pistol |
December 07, 2007 12:34AM |
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fmetrol |
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Dave L |
December 06, 2007 08:53PM |
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fmetrol |
December 06, 2007 09:09PM |
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Dave L |
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fmetrol |
December 07, 2007 08:08AM |
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Dave L |
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Jammer |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Jammer |
December 07, 2007 01:41PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Clive |
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Greg Reeder |
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Clive |
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Kanga |
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Anthony |
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Clive |
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Anthony |
December 11, 2007 09:44PM |
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fmetrol |
December 11, 2007 08:30PM |
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Anthony |
December 11, 2007 09:43PM |
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fmetrol |
December 11, 2007 10:26PM |
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Clive |
December 12, 2007 12:23AM |
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fmetrol |
December 12, 2007 01:00AM |
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Clive |
December 12, 2007 06:00PM |
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fmetrol |
December 12, 2007 08:01PM |
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Clive |
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fmetrol |
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Clive |
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MJ Thomas |
December 12, 2007 11:24PM |
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fmetrol |
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MJ Thomas |
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fmetrol |
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Clive |
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fmetrol |
December 13, 2007 10:14AM |
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Anthony |
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Chris Tedder |
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Greg Reeder |
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C Wayne Taylor |
December 13, 2007 05:11PM |
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fmetrol |
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Chris Tedder |
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fmetrol |
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Greg Reeder |
December 14, 2007 09:39AM |
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Chris Tedder |
December 14, 2007 03:22PM |
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Greg Reeder |
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Chris Tedder |
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Anthony |
December 14, 2007 09:21PM |
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C Wayne Taylor |
December 15, 2007 05:34AM |
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fmetrol |
December 15, 2007 06:45AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 15, 2007 10:45AM |
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fmetrol |
December 15, 2007 11:02AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 15, 2007 01:23PM |
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Anthony |
December 14, 2007 10:02AM |
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fmetrol |
December 14, 2007 10:19AM |
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Anthony |
December 14, 2007 10:27AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 13, 2007 05:58PM |
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C Wayne Taylor |
December 14, 2007 05:53AM |
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Chris Tedder |
December 13, 2007 01:51PM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 13, 2007 02:05PM |
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Chris Tedder |
December 13, 2007 02:58PM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 14, 2007 09:13PM |
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Clive |
December 13, 2007 09:33AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 12, 2007 10:57PM |
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Clive |
December 12, 2007 11:53PM |
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Hermione |
December 12, 2007 04:58AM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 08:23PM |
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Morph |
December 08, 2007 06:15AM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 08:27PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 05:07PM |
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Jammer |
December 07, 2007 01:45PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 05:02PM |
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Greg Reeder |
December 07, 2007 01:10PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 05, 2007 11:17AM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 03:43PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 06, 2007 10:19AM |
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Dave L |
December 06, 2007 12:52PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 07, 2007 01:25PM |
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rich |
December 05, 2007 03:14PM |
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Pistol |
December 05, 2007 03:27PM |
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Dave L |
December 05, 2007 03:35PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 06, 2007 10:29AM |
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Dave L |
December 06, 2007 12:32PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 06, 2007 12:50PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 05:15PM |
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Pistol |
December 05, 2007 07:50PM |
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Clive |
December 05, 2007 10:31PM |
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Pistol |
December 06, 2007 11:45AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 06, 2007 06:35PM |
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Clive |
December 06, 2007 11:43PM |
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Jammer |
December 07, 2007 01:51PM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 08:52PM |
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fmetrol |
December 11, 2007 09:27PM |
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Clive |
December 12, 2007 12:43AM |
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Dave L |
December 12, 2007 09:05AM |
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fmetrol |
December 12, 2007 09:51AM |
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Hermione |
December 12, 2007 10:00AM |
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Jammer |
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Clive |
December 12, 2007 06:20PM |
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Anthony |
December 12, 2007 06:28PM |
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cladking |
December 12, 2007 07:38PM |
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Anthony |
December 12, 2007 08:02PM |
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cladking |
December 12, 2007 08:21PM |
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fmetrol |
December 12, 2007 07:53PM |
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Jammer |
December 14, 2007 08:43AM |
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Clive |
December 14, 2007 11:43AM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 14, 2007 11:49AM |
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Clive |
December 14, 2007 01:08PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 14, 2007 01:15PM |
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Jammer |
December 14, 2007 01:58PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 14, 2007 02:03PM |
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Jammer |
December 14, 2007 02:23PM |
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Warwick L Nixon |
December 14, 2007 02:33PM |
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Kanga |
December 06, 2007 09:43AM |
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Greg Reeder |
December 07, 2007 12:38PM |
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fmetrol |
December 07, 2007 05:33PM |
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Greg Reeder |
December 07, 2007 05:59PM |
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fmetrol |
December 07, 2007 06:33PM |
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L Cooper |
December 08, 2007 08:08AM |
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Dave L |
December 09, 2007 04:52PM |
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Greg Reeder |
December 09, 2007 07:21PM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 08:34PM |
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fmetrol |
December 11, 2007 08:39PM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 08:50PM |
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fmetrol |
December 11, 2007 08:59PM |
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Clive |
December 11, 2007 08:32PM |
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poundr17 |
December 08, 2007 04:18PM |
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fmetrol |
December 08, 2007 06:09PM |
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David Johnson |
December 15, 2007 09:43AM |
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Clive |
December 15, 2007 11:36AM |
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David Johnson |
December 17, 2007 04:11AM |
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Clive |
December 17, 2007 06:15PM |
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Chris Tedder |
December 17, 2007 07:55PM |
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Chris Tedder |
December 17, 2007 06:46AM |
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fmetrol |
December 17, 2007 08:47AM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 06, 2007 06:28PM |
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Clive |
December 06, 2007 09:01PM |
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MJ Thomas |
December 07, 2007 09:07AM |
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Anthony |
December 06, 2007 09:53PM |
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L Cooper |
December 06, 2007 11:51PM |
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Hermione |
December 07, 2007 10:32AM |