IIII

IIII is a representation of the number four using four I characters. While the standard modern Roman numeral for four is IV, IIII appears in various historical, literary, and stylistic contexts. It is commonly encountered on clock faces and in older inscriptions, rather than in everyday mathematical notation.

Roman numerals developed over centuries, and additive forms such as IIII were used in some early inscriptions. The subtractive form IV, indicating four minus one, gradually became the dominant convention in most texts. Despite this standardization, IIII persisted in certain traditions and specialized usages.

One of the most familiar contexts for IIII today is clockmaking. Many traditional clock faces use IIII for the number four, a practice often attributed to aesthetic balance with VIII on the opposite side, or to ease of engraving and reader perception. The clock on the Palace of Westminster, commonly called Big Ben, uses IIII on its faces.

Outside horology, IIII appears sporadically in monuments, signage, and brand lettering for stylistic reasons. In contemporary mathematics and standard typography, IV is the preferred representation of four. IIII remains a notable example of nonstandard or historical variants within the Roman numeral system.