Squaring of the Circle

Letter

...rations. By themselves, both have already been sufficiently praised, yet they strike me as being especially deserving of praise: for what other very ancient teachers of a former age merely caught a scent of, one of these two perhaps most perfectly completed, or at least opened the path for posterity to track down the truth. For indeed, it is not difficult to add to things already discovered.

Therefore, since the demonstration of Campanus and Archimedes regarding the squaring of the circleoriginal: "tetragonismo circuli," the mathematical challenge of constructing a square with the exact same area as a circle using only a compass and straightedge. has come into our hands, I judged that it should by no means be suppressed (as misers are wont to do with their treasures). Rather, as generous men are accustomed to do, it seemed right to place everything in the public view and share it with others. Farewell.

Given at the nurturing University of Paduaoriginal: "almo studio patauino," Padua was one of the premier centers for scientific and mathematical study in the Renaissance.. July 18, 1503. original: "15. Kalendas sextiles." In the Roman calendar, the 15th day before the Kalends of August—counting inclusively—is July 18.

A circular library stamp from the National Library Vittorio Emanuele in Rome is placed in the center of the page, partially obscuring the bleed-through text from the back side of the paper.