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The Polygons of Albrecht Durer - mklabgr - 07-18-2026
The Polygons of Albrecht Durer
Summary
In The Polygons of Albrecht Dürer – 1525, Gordon Hughes revisits the remarkable geometric constructions presented by the Renaissance artist and mathematician Albrecht Dürer in his influential 1525 book on geometry. Written as a practical guide for artists and craftsmen, Dürer’s work explains how to construct regular polygons—from triangles to 16-sided figures—using only a compass and straightedge. Hughes carefully examines Dürer’s original text and illustrations, providing modern translations and recreating each construction with Mathematica to compare Dürer’s methods with mathematically exact constructions.
The study shows that while several of Dürer’s polygon constructions are only approximate, they are often impressively accurate and reveal his deep understanding of practical geometry. The paper also highlights Dürer’s ingenious method for approximately trisecting an angle, which performs far better than one might expect. Overall, it demonstrates how Dürer successfully combined artistic needs with mathematical insight, leaving a lasting contribution to both geometry and the history of mathematics.
ARTICLE [PDF]