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Architecture and Mathematics in Egypt

Rossi, Corinna

Studies revealing the mathematical or geometrical principles behind ancient Egyptian monuments have been around for years, so what does this one propose to `discover'? In real terms it does not intend or pretend to discover anything new and revolutionary, but rather Corinna Rossi seeks to study the relationship between architecture and mathematics in relation to Old and Middle Kingdom Egyptian pyramids. The first part of the book examines the approaches, and reviews the theories, taken by architectural historians and Egyptologists in finding a `rule' guiding the construction of monuments and asks whether these matched their expectations. Part two is an analysis of the archaeological evidence for the planning and building process as a means of assessing how mathematics may have been used by Egyptian architects, scribes and workmen. In the final part, which attempts to reconcile parts I and II, Rossi argues that we need to look beyond the often inaccurate plans of buildings and monuments, and move away from using modern mathematical systems to allow the `original planning process of a building to re-emerge'. 280p, 102 b/w illus, 9 tbs (Cambridge UP 2004, Pb 2007)

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