Whereas the latter had obtained a value "less than 3," there are learned documents of about the same date that have been preserved, according to which the value of π comes out as exactly 4. Compared with this grandiose bungling, even the observations mentioned in the Old Testament are models of refinement. For, as early as three thousand years ago, it is stated of the mighty basin in the temple of Solomon (First Book of Kings, chapter VII.): "And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about." Thus π here appears as 3, an approximation which no longer satisfied later generations. The wise men of the Talmud went a step further, in saying 3 plus a little more; and this agrees roughly with the actual value. The view became more and more deeply rooted that this π was a main pillar of mathematical thought and calculation. The more the problem of the quadrature of the circle seized on men's minds, the greater were the efforts made to find the exact value of this "little more" of the Talmud. Since 1770 we know that this is not possible, for π is not rational, that is, it can be represented only as an infinite and irregular (that is, non-repeating) decimal expression. It occupies, further, a special rank as a transcendental quantity; this fact was proved by Lindemann as late as 1882 for the first time. Yet, even nowadays, there are incorrigible devotees of quadrature, who are still hunting a solution because they cannot rid themselves of the hallucination that such a simple figure as the circle must submit ultimately to a constructive process. The correct way was to carry out an even more accurate determination of the decimal figures. The above-mentioned Ludolf van Ceulen got as far as the 35th place of decimals; at the turn of the eighteenth century the 100th decimal place was reached. Since 1844, thanks to the lightning calculator Dase, we have its value to the 200th decimal place, and this should satisfy even the most extravagant demands. This number, associated with the circle, is a classical example of how an approximation that is expressible in figures of very small value gives an order of accuracy that can be described only by using fantastic illustrations. If we take a circle of the size of the equator, and also multiply the value of the diameter of the earth by π, we know that the latter result will not be exactly equal to the former, and that there will always be a small remainder. If this discrepancy were less than a metre, the order of exactness would be extraordinarily high, for a metre is practically insignificant compared with a mighty circle of the dimensions of the earth's circumference.