This reminded me of the quipu: A quipu usually consisted of cotton or camelid fiber strings. The Inca people used them for collecting data and keeping records,

This reminded me of the quipu: A quipu usually consisted of cotton or camelid fiber strings. The Inca people used them for collecting data and keeping records, monitoring tax obligations, properly collecting census records, calendrical information, and for military organization.[4] The cords stored numeric and other values encoded as knots, often in a base ten positional system. A quipu could have only a few or thousands of cords.[5] The configuration of the quipus has been "compared to string mops."[6] Archaeological evidence has also shown the use of finely carved wood as a supplemental, and perhaps more sturdy, base to which the color-coded cords would be attached.[7] A relatively small number have survived. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quipu https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quipu