Why do so many Roman-numeral clock faces use "IIII" for 4 rather than "IV"?
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Problem
Why do so many Roman-numeral clock faces use "IIII" for 4 rather than "IV"? -- David Karr <karr@cs.cornell.edu>
Show solution
As the story goes, using IIII to represent 4 on the clock gives the clock a total of four X's, four V's, and twenty I's. This means you can just make a die or mold that contains XVIIIII, and take four of those molds to get all the digits for your clock. I'm skeptical, however... this sounds like an urban legend. -- Jonathan S. Haas <positron@blarg.net>