While producing the first logarithmic tables Napier needed to perform many multiplications, and it was at this point that he designed Napier's bones, an abacus-like device used for multiplication and division.
While producing the first logarithmic tables, Napier needed to perform many tedious multiplications. It was at this point that he designed his'Napier's bones', an abacus-like device that greatly simplified calculations that involved multiplication and division.