
Stomachion Puzzle #2

by Science Photo Library
Title
Stomachion Puzzle #2
Artist
Science Photo Library
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
Stomachion puzzle. This mathematical puzzle is derived from a treatise written by the 3rd century BC Ancient Greek mathematician and inventor Archimedes. The original manuscript (which used the spelling 'Ostomachion') described the dissection of a square or rectangle into 14 pieces. These pieces can be arranged in different ways to form the square shown here (another example is shown in C007/6210). If rotations and reflections of the pieces are allowed, the number of possible combinations forming this square is 17,152. First rediscovered in 1881 and developed since then, this is an example of the mathematical field of combinatorics.
Uploaded
October 7th, 2018
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