Albrecht Dürer's Description of Human Proportion

Of the Proportion of Man.

Now, along the first vertical line of the Man viewed from the side, I wish first to indicate his thickness on all the transverse lines drawn through the length of the limbs.

First, at the top of the head, on the nearest line below the crown, I make the Head thick through the back vertebra the occiput or the prominence at the back of the skull by one-ninth part.
Above the Forehead, a 14th and 15th part.
Above the Eyebrows, a seventh part.
Above the Nose, an eighth part.
Above the chin and Neck, also an 8th part.
The Neck below the Head and chin, I make thick by a 12th part.
Above the hollow of the neck the suprasternal notch at the base of the throat, a 9th part.
At the height of the Chest, two-thirteenth parts.
At the armpits original: "orselen", a 6th part.
Above the Nipples, a 6th part.
Below the Breasts, a 12th and 13th part.
In the waist original: "weecke," the soft part of the flank, a 12th and a 13th part.
At the beginning of the hips, a 6th part.
At the end of the Hips across the Belly and Buttocks, an 11th and a 12th part.
At the private parts original: "Schaemte," referring to the pubic region of the Man, also an 11th and a 12th part.
And the Leg below the Buttocks, I make thick by a 7th part.
But below that, in the middle of the thigh upper leg, a 14th and a 15th part.
Above the knee, a 10th part.
In the middle of the knee, a 12th part.
Below the knee, also a 12th part.
In the middle of the calves original: "kupten" where it is thickest, a 20th and 21st part.
At the end of the inner calves, a 13th part.
Below, above the joint of the Foot, where the Leg is thinnest, an 18th part.
And the Foot I make a 6th part.
Thereafter, I make the thickness of the flat forearm Arms in the armpit, two-twenty-first parts.
But below the armpit, a 13th part.
In the Elbow, at the strongest part of the Arm, also an 18th part.
And at the hand, a 32nd part.
And the palm of the hand I make thick by a 30th part.
And in the drawing, I wish to place the Arms separately beside the figures, so that one does not lose one's way in other things.
After this, I wish to set the other vertical line of the Man viewed from the front according to

the length of the limbs, and on all transverse lines, the width of those same parts.
The Man I make in the head, on the line of the back vertebra wide, a 10th part.
Above the Forehead, an 8th part.
Above the Eyebrows, a 9th part.
Above the Ears, an 8th part.
Above the Nose, a 10th part.
And the Neck is wide below the chin by a 12th part.
Between the limbs below the armpits, above the hollow of the neck, a 5th part.
Above the Chest, ten parts deep this likely refers to the depth or "thickness" measurement again, or a specific depth of the pectoral muscle.
Between the armpits, a 5th part.
Between the Nipples, a 15th part.
In the waist of the sides, a 5th part.
At the beginning of the Hips, one-ninth and two-nineteenth parts.
At the end of the Hips a 4th part, and on this line the Legs stand in the Hips a sixth part wide from each other; at the private parts also a 4th part, but that Leg near the end of the Buttocks two-seventeenth parts, [and] at the thickest of the leg a 10th part.
This thickness of the leg is to be observed on the inner leg of the figure seen from the front.
After that, I make that Leg wide above the knee a 12th part, in the middle of the knee a 14th part, below the knee a 26th part, in the middle of the calves a 22nd part and a 24th part.
At the end of the inner calves a 14th part.
At the bottom in the Shinbone, a 2nd part.
Through the Ankles a 22nd part, and the foot at the front a 15th part.
Thereafter, I make the widths of the Arm seen from the front.
Below the armpits an 18th part.
Behind the Elbow a 21st part.
Through the Elbow a 16th part.
Behind the joint of the hand the wrist a 25th part.