SolvingtheVitruvianMan

PatrickM.Dey&DamianPiLanningham

TheProblemandtheGeometry SolvingtheVitruvianMan1Problemseemstohaveeludedmathematiciansandgeometriciansforalmost 2000years.Someprobablyneverknewtherewasproblem.Itusesthatmysterious,andyetveryfamiliar numberphi(),anumberthatseemstolurkintheshadowsofallmathematics.Wewillshowhowthe human in the square and circle is created, and how the same geometries can account for all anthropometrics,whetherthehumanisinmotionornot.Furthermore,wewillilluminatehowthesame geometricprocessisrelatedtoothergeometries,suchasthepentagram,andhowitisanaturalself replicatinggeometry.Vitruviusdescribesthegeometricalproportionsofthehumanbodyas:
Inthehumanbodythecentralpointisnaturallythenavel.Forifamanbeplacedflatonhis back, with his hands and feet extended, and a pair of compasses centered at his navel, the fingersandtoesofhistwohandsandfeetwilltouchthecircumferenceofthecircledescribed therefrom.Andjustasthehumanbodyyieldsacircularoutline,sotooasquarefiguremaybe foundfromit.Forifwemeasurethedistancefromthesolesofthefeettothetopofthehead, andthenapplythatmeasuretotheoutstretchedarms,thebreadthwillbefoundtobethesame astheheight,asinthecaseofplanesandsurfaceswhichareperfectlysquare. DeArchitectura,BookIII,1:3

AlthoughVitruviusdoesnotpresentthequestionathand,thequestionstillexists:howdoesthehuman body fit into both a circle and a square? This problem has been searched and worked out by many geometricians, such as Agrippa, Cesariano, Drer, and Da Vinci. The problem is somewhat of a latent probleminthatwecanmaptheproportionsandgeometriesofthehumanbodyanddiscovernumerous relationshipsandproportions.Butwemustaskthen:howisthisgeometrycreatedinthefirstplace? InlookingatLeonardDaVincisVitruvianMan,themostnotableinterpretationofVitruviussCanonof Proportions,wecanbegintounderstandsomegeneralproblems:

ThroughouthistorytheVitruvianManhasbeenastudyoftheidealmalebody.Thismakesgenderneutrality difficulttoworkintothispaper.Wewouldliketoapologizefortheuseofhisratherthanhis/her.Inthat respect,theproblemofidealizationandthefemininebodyisaddressedinthispaperonpages1213.
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Thefirstindicationthatthereisageometricalproblemisthefactthattheupperverticesofthesquare donotmeettheboundaryofthecircle,butratheroverlapit.Thisisnomilderror,astheoverlapisin errorbyroughly1.5%ofthecirclesradius.Consideringthiserror,oneoftwothingsmustbeaccepted: eitherthehumanbodyisnotperfectandnatureisnotaperfectgeometrician,orthereisanaturaland geometrically perfect means of constructing the Vitruvian Canon. Since the former is antithetical to humanist ideals of the body being perfect, as well as the belief that nature is the most perfect (and beautiful) geometrician, we have to argue for the latter. But once again: attempted solutions need examination. Inordertotacklethisproblem,abitofhistoryandotherattemptstosolveitshouldbelookedat.This question was considered and attempted by the architect Charles Le Corbusier Jeanneret, one of the fathersofModernistarchitecture.From1943to1945LeCorbusierworkedwithayoungcollaborator, who is only known as Hanning, as well as Mlle Elisa Maillard. Le Corbusier, working with AFNOR on standardizingproducts,goods,andbuildings,presentedaproportioningproblemtoHanning:
Takeamanwitharmupraised,220m.inheight;puthiminsidetwosquares110by110 meterseach,superimposedoneachother;putathirdsquareastridethesefirsttwosquares.This third square should give you a solution. The place of the right angle should help you decide wheretoputthisthirdsquare.2

Logically,thisprocessshouldincorporateandbedevelopedfromthegoldenmean,sincethispropertyis inherent in human proportions. The first proposal given by Hanning (Figure A) was to begin with a squareandthenproducegoldenrectanglea.Next,fromtheinitialsquaredrawroottworectanglebon the opposing side of the square from the golden rectangle. The resulting rectangle is almost two adjacentsquares(FigureB),thereforetheangle()oftheregulatinglines3oftheoverallrectangleis greaterthan90(FigureC):

FigureA FigureB FigureC Theproductoftheroottwosolutionrectangleisinerrorby1.6%,and,therefore,notaviablesolution. About two years later, meeting with Mlle Elisa Maillard, another solution was proposed. A golden rectangleisconstructedfromasquare.Nextalineisconstructedfrompointaofthegoldenrectangleto theopposingmidpointoftheinitialsquare,pointb.A90isdrawnfromlineabtointersectwiththe base of the geometry at point c (Figure D). The resulting rectangle is closer to two adjacent squares (FigureE),butstillinerrorby0.63%andproducesregulatinglinesthathaveanangle()greaterthan 90(FigureF):
LeCorbusier.TheModulor.Trans.PeterdeFranciaandAnnaBostock.Basel,Switzerland:BirkhuserPublishers. 2004.P.37. 3 RegulatinglinesisatermusedbyLeCorbusiertodenotelinesthatintersectat90angles.
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 FigureD FigureE FigureF Thedifferenceintheerrorsoftheabovesolutionscanbeseenhere:

Although this system is in error, Le Corbusier used this geometric structure to devise his infamous Modulor System, which is a system of measurements built on the principle of anthropometrics that proportionatelygrow(ordiminish)fromtheinitialgeometricconstruct.Thiswashismeanstohumanize architecture. We must admit that the geometries are approximated, and at certain times completely falseandprobablyforced(forinstanceatangentiallineproducedfromtheregulatinglines,whichisnot tangential to its circle4). But given that these geometries were constructed with Tsquares, triangles, compasses,andpencils,itseemslogicalthatageometricalerrorwouldbeconsideredanerroronthe draftsmansbehalf.Moresurprisingly,though,isthefactthatLeCorbusierdidknowthatthisgeometry was flawed! In 1948, a Monsieur R. Taton informs Le Corbusier: Your two initial squares are not squares;oneoftheirsidesislargerbysixthousandthsoftheother[grossmiscalculation].LeCorbusier being economical considers: In everyday practice, six thousandths of a value are what is called a negligiblequantityitisnotseenwiththeeye.ButLeCorbusieralsobeingamysticfurtheradds:I suspect that these six thousandths of a value have an infinitely precious importance: the thing is not openandshut,itisnotsealed;thereisachinktoletintheair;lifeisthere,awakenedbytherecurrence of a fateful equality which is not exactly, not strictly equal And that is what creates movement (sic).5 We, on the other hand, argue that there is no error in the initial problem and that Le Corbusier just happens to be dead wrong (which is certainly not the first time he was dead wrong, but 20th Century paradigmsonurbanismdonotneedtobeaccountedhere).Asmathematiciansandgeometricianswe claimthatifthereisanerror,nomatterhowtrivialandsmall,itisanerror,andthereforeincorrect.
4 5

Ibid.,p.64,Fig.21. Ibid.,p.234.

Furthermore,wearguethatthesolutionhastobeelegant.AnotherlookatLeCorbusiersgeometrywill showthatitisnotelegant.Forhisgeometrytobeinaccordancewiththehumanbody,theportionof the rectangle created by the regulating lines (established at point c) shown in Figure D has to be removed from its initial side of the square to be placed next to the golden rectangle (Figure G). This createsthedistancebetweenthetopoftheheadtothetipofthefingerswhenthearmisraisedabove the head (Figure H). The final problem with Le Corbusiers solution is that it only accounts for the proportionsofverticalhumanmeasurements,thatis,itonlyattemptstosolvetheheight.TheModulor nevertakesintoaccounthorizontalmeasurements,suchtheproportionsofthearmspantothewhole. Thiswewillaccountforshortly.

FigureG

FigureH (DrawingbyLeCorbusier,
fromTheModulor)

LookingatLeCorbusiersModulorwefindthatitisnotonlyincorrect,butitisalsonotelegant.Natures geometries do not disassemble and then reassemble a construction. Humans are the ones, with their reason and logic, construct geometries and reassemble them arbitrarily in whatever manner suits their liking. On the other hand, the geometries of nature are built up from an initial geometry to construct the whole. Man disassembles and reassembles harmony to create beauty, while nature simplyconstructsharmonythatisbeautiful,naturejustexists.Nowwereturntotheinitialquestion,but withmoreconstraints: 1)Constructageometrythatcontinuouslybuildsuponitself 2)Thegeometryconstructsthehumaninsidebothacircleandsquareinaccordancewiththe VitruvianCanonofProportions 3)Thegeometryaccountsnotonlyfortheverticalanthropometrics,butalsoforthehorizontal measurementsandproportions 4)Itisdevisedfromthegoldenmean 5)And,finally,theconstructionofthegeometryhasanelegantsolution. In considering this problem, we find that it is justifiable that Le Corbusier would assume that starting with a square and constructing a golden rectangle that could inevitably produce two perfect squares throughsomeotherformofgeometrizing.Also,weassumehemustalsoberightinassumingthatthe critical dividing lines created by an overlapping third square must be found in accordance with the humanbody,suchastheheightofthehead.

When we began approaching this problem, we segmented a square abcd with a line op so that the segmentsoflineabareagoldenmean(Figure1).Wedidthisassumingthatthegoldenmeanhadtobe presentwithasquare,butnotnecessarilyformingagoldenrectangle.Ifthelengthofsegmentopthat dividesthesquareabcdintoagoldenmeanissquared6,thisnaturallycreatesagoldenrectanglebcef forthewholegeometrythusfar(Figure2).Therefore,Figure1=Figure2,andthesquaresabcdand opfe are equal. Finally, if the initial square is squared, this naturally creates two perfect and adjacent squares,aswellasgivingthepositionofthethirdsquareoverlappingthetwoadjacentsquares(Figure 3).

Figure1 Figure2 Figure3 Although this does solve the problem of the two squares created from a golden mean and is rather elegant,itsimplyisnotelegantenough.Itisnotelegantenoughsimplybecausesacredgeometries,and, therefore, natural geometries, do not typically segment a square with a golden mean without being created initially from another golden geometry. Additionally, it does not account for horizontal anthropometrics.Sotheconstructionofthisgeometrymustbereconsidered. Theeasiestremedytojustifyingthegoldenmeansegmentationofthesquareistoformasquarefrom two golden rectangles on perpendicular axes. Essentially, starting with square abcd whose edges all equal to ( ) create a golden rectangle cdfe so that line xd equal to line xe, in that point x is the midpointoflinebc.Thenconstructanothergoldenrectangleadghontheperpendicularaxissothatline yd is equal to line yh, in which point y is the midpoint of line ab. We now have a square that is segmentedintotwolines,insteadofjustone,sothatthesegmentsaregoldenmeans.Thereforecreate thesquarebeih.Thenewsquaresareais2.

Square 2 Area= 2+2 Perimeter=44

GoldenRectangle Area=2 Perimeter=42

TwoGoldenRectangles Linebe=bh= Square Area=2 Perimeter=4

InthispaperwewillusetermsindraftingwithTsquares,compasses,andtriangles.Thetermsquaredor squaringreferstomakingasquarefromagivenlinesegment,andnottobeconfusedwithx2,unlessstatedso.
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Thus,thesameprocessofcreatingFigures13canbereiteratedasfollows.Withsquarebeihconstruct agoldenrectangleejkibysquaringlinesegmentcg,thatis,thegoldenmeanofsquarebeih,sothatline cgisequaltolinecj.Thisgivesthesameresultasifthemidpointoflinebewasrotated,sothatlineziis equaltolinezj.Asaresultsquaresbeihandcjkgareequal.Subsequently,takelineeiandsquareitso thatlineseiandelareequal.Theresultistwoperfectandadjacentsquares,inthatsquaresbeih,cjki, and elmi are all equal, this locates the placement of the third square. The newly created square is equallysegmentedintoagoldenmeanastheinitialsquare.Theoverallgeometrythusfarhasanareaof 22.

GoldenRectangle Area=22 Perimeter=62

ProofofThirdSquare 2 Squaresbeih=cjki=

TwoSquares Area=22 Perimeter=6

Toreiteratethestepsandthemathematics: 1)Theinitialsquarewithanareaof222createsagoldenmean. 2)Theareaofthegoldenrectangleequals2. 3)Squaringoffthegoldenrectanglecreatesanewsquarewithanareaof2. 4)Fromthisnewsquarecreateanothergoldenrectanglewithanareaof22. 5)Fromthesquarecreatedinstep2squareoneofitslengthstoproducetwoequalsquareseach withanareaof2,sothattheoverallgeometryhasanareaof22. 6)Therhythmicpatternoftheperimeterofthisgeometryis:,,,,,,, 7)Thusthetwoadjacentsquaresareequallysegmentedintogoldenmeans. 6

Toemphasizethatthisiscorrect,thefollowingdrawingswillillustratethesquaresandtheirplacements:

PlacementofThirdSquare

CreationofSecondSquare

TwoPerfectAdjacentSquares

Hereitmaybearguedthatwemerelyestablishedourowngeometry,butdidnotsolveLeCorbusiers problem as he posed it. If we were to solve the problem as Le Corbusier posed, we would have to accountfortheregulatinglinesandthe90angle.Ashesaid:Theplaceoftherightangleshouldhelp you decide where to put this third square. At this point, the placement of the right angle is rather trivial.IfweweretocorrectLeCorbusiersproblemasheposedit,theresultswillstillbethesame,and followsassuch: Firstconstructgoldenrectangleaefd.Thensquarelineefbacktowardthecircle,whichsegmentssquare abcdintoagoldenmeanbythelinesegmentxy.Butifthisconstructionissupposedtouseregulating lines, then the easiest way to create two squares is to draw two successive 45 angles that are perpendicular to each other. So if we draw a 45 () from point e toward the opposing edge of the squarethelinewillintersectatpointy.

Nextdrawalinefrompointythatisperpendiculartolineeysothatitcreatespointg.Thiscreatesthe twoperfectandadjacentsquares,sothatsquaresabcd=xefy=gxyh.Thisconstructionnotonlygives theverticalanthropometrics,italsocancreatethehorizontalmeasurements.Linesbcandeyintersect atpointo.Ifalinepqisdrawntointersectatpointoaswell,thenthegoldenrectanglebefcandthe squareabcdarebisectedintogoldenmeans.

Thus, the above essentially creates a reiteration of the same geometry we have already proposed. AlthoughthisdoessolveLeCorbusiersproblemasheposedit,itisnotnecessarytocontinueusingthe regulatinglinestoexpresstherestofthecreationoftheVitruvianMan. 7

Atthispoint,theverystructureoftheourproposedgeometricconstructincorporatesthegoldenmean, thus not only accurately giving the human height in the square and circle, but also horizontal measurementsthataretheresultofsquaringthegoldenmean.Itseemsratherlogicalatthispointto assume that line jk is the top of the human head, so we can complete the rest of the geometry by squaringlinebj,basedonVitruviussdescription.Assumptionisratherinappropriatehere.Itisbetterto understandthelogicalconstructionofthehumangeometry.Itcanbeseenthatthisprocessstartswitha square that grows into another square by a golden mean, and this square grows into a golden mean. Thusitcanbeconcludedthatthenextstepistorepeatandsquareoffthelargestgoldenmeanthusfar. Thisisnotajustificationbutacompletelyrationalnextstep,sincethefirstconstraintestablishedabove states that the geometries must build upon themselves, much like the way in which a nautilus shell continuouslybuildsuponitselfwiththesameproportionalgeometry,i.e.agoldenmean. So,iftheprocesscontinuesasbefore,thelargestgoldenrectanglebjkhissquaredestablishingpointo. This is done so that lines bj and bo are equal, thus creating the square bjno, being the square within which the Vitruvian Man rests. Then the whole array of construction lines and geometries are orthogonallycompletedtocreateblpo,agridofsquaresandgoldenrectangles.Thisistheprimarygrid of the human proportions and measurements, and henceforth will be referred to as the geometric construct.

SquaringtheHeight
Linebj=bo

CompletingtheGrid

FromthisgeometrywefindseveralaspectsthatarerelatedtoVitruviussdescriptionofthehuman geometries.Forinstancelengthsjnandjbareequal,andthereforeasquare.Lengthseb,ei,andelare equalaswell.Giventheseequalitiesitcanthereforebeestablishedthatlineeqsegmentstheconstruct equallyvertically,andlinevwsegmentstheconstructequallyhorizontally.Therefore,pointuisthe midpointandpointofintersectionoflineseqandvw.Likewise,ifadiagonallinebisectingtheconstruct weredrawn,forinstancealinebporlo,thentheirmidpointsandpointofintersectionwouldstillbe pointu.Thusitcanbeestablishedthatpointuisthecenteroftheconstruct,or,inasenseisthecenter

ofinertia.AccordingtoVitruvius,itcanlogicallybeconcludedthatthisisthelocationofnavel,aswellas thecenterofthecirclethatencompassesthehumanfigure.

VitruvianCanonofProportions Area=422 Perimeter=4

VitruvianMan

Not only is this solution elegant and builds upon its own geometries, it also accounts for horizontal anthropometrics.Theinitialsquare,goldenmean,andthereflectedsquareestablishthebreadthofthe shoulders. As opposed to Le Corbusiers geometry, whose defining geometry of the Canon of Proportions was slightly irregular, here the solution provides a regular grid that can be repeated, i.e. constructanothersquarefromtheinitial(orprevious)goldenmean,thensquaretheinitial(orprevious) square,thensquarethepreviousgoldenmean,etcetera. CreatingallAnthropometrics Logicallyfromthisbasicgeometricalconstructtherestofthemeasurementsofthehumanbodyshould beabletobeconstructedfromtheoverallgeometry.Inessence,wehavetoaccountforcreating,or, anotherwayofsayingit,correctingLeCorbusiersModulorSystemandachievealltheanthropometrics of the human body. Furthermore, we should be able to account for all body parts (i.e. the hands and digits)andbodilylocations(i.e.locationoftheelbow)bybuildingoffofthesameprocessestablished above.Sincetheseproportionscanbebuiltoutward,i.e.growuponthemselves,likewisetheyshouldbe abletobeconstructedinward,orfractalized7. LeCorbusiersModulorisaproportionatelygrowing(ordiminishing)systemofmeasurementsthatare derivedfromanthropometricsthatgrowordiminishbyeithersquaring(ordoubling)themeasurement or produced from the golden mean. Since the solution proposed involves the same process of either squaring or producing a golden mean following this exact same pattern, our solution can provide the mostaccurateModulorSystem.
Hereandthroughoutthepaperthetermfractalwillbeusedtodenoteshapesandmeasurementsthat proportionallyaugmentordiminishinsize,butremainproportionaltotheirsimilarcounterpartinrelation.
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OneminorflawonLeCorbusierspartisthathisgeometricconstructonlyaccountsforafewprimary positionsofbodyparts.Forinstance,thepositionofthethirdsquareintheModulorprovidesthecrown ofthehead,andthecommonedgeofthetwosquaresprovidesthepositionofthebellybutton.Of course, this only accounts for their vertical positions and not their horizontal positions. All other positionsonthebodyareaccountedforsecondarilybyeithersquaringorproducingthegoldenmeanof variousnumbers,andthereforeareratherarbitrarymeansofaccountingforthesepositions.(SeeFigure Habove). Thus,oursolutionsModulorsystem,sotosay,hastobeabletoprovidebothhorizontalandvertical positions of body parts. The solution to defining the lesser anthropometrics are just as elegant as constructing the overall geometric construct, as it follows an identical means of construction. The solutionisasfollows: Since rest of the bodily positions and measurements must be defined by a golden mean, the solution muststartwithasquare.Thesquaresurroundingthegroin(henceforthwillbereferredtoasthegroin square) is to be chosen, since it is the smallest square that lies within the human body. If one of the larger squares, say square abcd is chosen, then the construction process will only repeat the overall geometricconstruct,andthereforeproducenonewresults.(Sincesquareabcdcreatesthegroinsquare throughagoldenmean).Ifthesquareabovetheheadischosen(intheregioncreatedbythearmraised above the head) to create golden means, then the geometries will lie outside the static human body, andthereforeisnotaprimesquaretochoose.Thegroinhappenstobethecenterofthebodywhenthe arms are held perpendicular to the body or lower. If the arms are higher than the shoulder line then theyfallintothegreatcircleandthenavelbecomesthecenter,thusproducinggeometriesoutsidethe body.Sothegroinsquareappearstobethemostlogicalchoice. Constructgoldenrectanglesonallfoursidesofthegroinsquare.Thentaketheedgesproducedbyeach golden rectangle and continue them to the edges of the great square, therefore creating a grid. The measurementsproducedaccountfortheverticalheightofthekneesandthecenterofthebreasts(i.e. thenipplesinmales,butcenterofthebreastsinadultfemales),aswellasthehorizontalpositionofthe elbow.

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Thenextsmallestsquarethatis,oneofthesmallersquaresproducedbysquaringthegoldenmeansof thegroinsquareisthenusedtoproducefourgoldenmeansoneachsideofthesquare.Thisisdonein just the same manner as in the previous step illustrated above. The measurements produced here accountfortheverticalheightofthegroin(i.e.theheightofthepubictriangleandthefulcrumpointof thefemur)andthepositionofthecollarbone,aswellasthehorizontalpositioninwhichtheeyesare offsetfromthenose(i.e.theouteredgeoftheeye).

Again,thenextsmallestsquarethenproducesfourgoldenmeans.Themeasurementscreatedaccounts for the vertical position of the mouth and the trough of the breastplates center (i.e. bottom of the sternum),andthehorizontalpositionofthewrist.

The same construction repeated for the next smallest square accounts for the vertical height of the centerlineofthearmsandtheheightoftheeyes,aswellasthehorizontalpositionofthecenterofthe palm. Doing this once more will account for the horizontal location of the moment where the fingers meetthepalm. 11

Thisis,ofcourse,aniterativeconstructionwithnoend.Logically,becauseofthecontinuoussquaringof the golden means the asymptote approaches the opposing vertex of the square. And, since it is an iterative process, any square on any side of any square can be chosen to create another bodily measurementorposition.Speculatively,thoughmostprobably,thisasymptoticgridofanthropometrics accountsforeveryhumanmeasurementfromthelengthofthesmallintestinestothethicknessofthe earlobe.TheasymptoticgridformedhereechoesasimilargridLeCorbusierconstructedtodeviseboth verticalandhorizontalModulormeasurementsofthehuman. 8Although,hisisadhocandistryingto force the Modular to account for horizontal bodily measurements, and it is not constructed from the overallconstruct.

Now, Le Corbusier with his Modulor System, and even Albrecht Drer before him, devised numerical measurements for the human body for application in the visual arts, furniture design, architecture, productdesign,andanythingwithergonomicapplications.SoasafinalnotetoLeCorbusiersModulor,
8

Ibid.,p.8587,Figures3335.

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wedonotwishtocorrecthisModulordimensions.Thereasonsfornotdoingsohavenothingtodowith the math and tedious calculations. Rather we object to his value system altogether for democratic reasons. The values derived from the Modulor only correspond to the ideal male, who is six feet in height.Itmustbestressedthattheidealmaleheightisdifferentfromtheaveragemaleheight.SinceLe CorbusierisFrench,theaveragemaleheightis5foot9inches.Heusedthesixfoottallmanbasedon Englishdetectivenovels,inwhichthegoodlookingmanisalwayssixfeettall.ButinEnglandtheaverage manis5foot9inchestall.9IntheU.S.theaverageCaucasianmanis5foot9inchestall.10Clearlyhis anthropometrics are ideal, rather than average. Additionally, his anthropometric values are not in harmonyforsomeonethatisneitheraveragenoridealinheight.Obviously,ahousebuiltforanaverage manisnotinanthropometricaccordancewiththeModular,andthereforeoutofharmony.Finally,his system could be deemed sexist, as it does not account for women, whose proportions and anthropometricsareslightlydifferentfromaman(forinstance,thehipsandbreasts).Theveryfactthat VitruviussdescriptionhasalwaysbeenreferredtoastheVitruvianManhasbeenplayeduponwith VitruvianWomanintheFeministmovement;mostnotableistheVitruvianWomanbySusanDorothea White,aswellasonebyNatKrate. One can see the can of worms opened when trying to accurately and equally account for the vast amountofvariationsofhumanproportionsandmeasurementsinallcultures,races,ageranges,andthe sexes.Wewillleavethatfortheergonomists. Butthenagain,whenLeCorbusierdevisedhisModulorSystemheroundedoffthenumberssothatthey maybefeasiblyimplementedforpracticalpurposes.Nocontractorwouldevertrytomakeaconcrete wallexactly1.61803399meterslong.Inthissense,wewerebeingmisleadingwhenwesaidwewould provideamostaccurateModulor.Really,wearejustprovidingthemostaccuratemeansforcreating theModulor.TherereallyisnothingwrongwiththevaluesoftheModulor,exceptthattheyareonlyfor a sixfoot tall man. And in reality Le Corbusier did not devise his Modulor values from his anthropo geometry,butratherfromsomebasicnumbers,suchastheheightofthehead,thenavel,andthearm raised above the head. He then took these numbers and either squared or produced a golden mean fromthem.Inshort,hisoriginalvalueswouldactuallybeidenticaltothenumbersofourgeometry. GeometryandMetricsoftheGreatCircle AnothersignificantproblemwiththeVitruvianManisthegreatcircle11.Wehavebeenassumingthusfar that it is simply there because Vitruvius said so. Nowhere in did the geometric construct say to us : Hereuponthoushaltplacethycircle,anditshallbeyeradius.(Pointinfacttheconstructsaysthatwu
NationalCenterforSocialResearch.HealthSurveyforEngland2008.UnitedKingdom:NationalCenterforSocial Research.2009. 10 NationalCenterforHealthStatistics.AnthropometricReferenceDataforChildrenandAdults:UnitedStates2003 2006,Number10,October22,2008.Hayattsville,Maryland:NationalCenterforHealthStatics.2008. 11 The term great circle will be used to refer to the circle created from the arms raised above the head and whose center is the navel. The same will apply for the great square, in which the width is created from the horizontal span of the arms (negating the vertical height) and the vertical position of the feet (negating the horizontalposition).Itisthesespecificgeometriesandtheirspecificrelationtothehumanbodythatisimportant, for,aswewillseeinthediscussionondynamicanthropometrics,thatthegreatsquareandcirclewillchangesizes, butstillmaintain,relativelyspeaking,theirspecificrelationstothehumanbody.
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will be the radius). But where does it come from? How is it created from the rest of the human geometry? Where does the extra width on either flank of the square from the circle originate? How muchisthatextralength?Thesemayseemliketrivialquestions.Itmaybearguedthatthegreatcircle hasalreadybeenaccountedfor.Weestablishedthatthenavelisthecenterofthegeometricconstruct (thatis,sotosay,thecenterofinertia),andthereforewecandrawacirclewhosecircumferenceis tangential to the bottom of the feet and the tips of the fingers when the arms are upraised. In this sense, the circle has been accounted for vertically and not horizontally. In answering these questions, wewilldemonstratethatthegeometriesofnaturearenotdesignedinstatics,butthatnaturedesignsin dynamics.Thefactthatnaturedesignsindynamicsiscriticaltotheanimalkingdom. The term static human would be assumed to mean a person standing with their arms at their side, whichwillsatisfyverticalanthropometrics,butnothorizontal.Althoughthisiscompletelylegitimate,we willrefertothestatichumanasapersonwithhisarmsheldoutrightandhisfeetareflatontheground inordertocreatethesquare.Therefore,anyinstanceinwhichthearmsareraisedorloweredfromthe staticposition,orthelegsareswungoutward,newgeometriesarecreatedthatareinaccordancewith thegreatcircle.ThismayalreadybeobviouswithDaVincissketch. In order to further address this problem, it is important to consider what other intellectuals besides Vitruvius,DaVinci,andLeCorbusierhadtosayonthematter.Ofparticularimportance areCornelius Agrippa, Cesare Cesariano, and Albrecht Drer. In examining the Vitruvian Canon of Proportions from these individuals we will find that there is more information embedded in Di Vincis sketch than originallyassumed(wewillrevealDaVincissecretsasweprogress). Firstletuslookattheformer,thealchemistandphilosopherCorneliusAgrippa.InhisThreeBooksof Occult Philosophy Agrippa produced six plates that diagrammatically describe the overall human geometries.12 It seems easy for us to dismiss his drawings of the human geometries because his MedievaldrawingstyledoesnotlookproportionateoraswelldrawnatDiVincissketch(anditmustbe stressedthatDiVincisVitruvianManisonlyasketch).Orwemightwanttodismisstheseforthefact thattherearealchemalsymbolsinscribedaboutthehumanfigure,andweknowalchemytobealotof mysticismwithsomesciencebehindit.ButaswewillproveAgrippasdiagramsareinaccordancewith humangeometries.Herearethesixplatesheproduced:

Plate1 Plate2 Plate3

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Agrippa,HeinrichCornelius.DeOccultaPhilosophiaLibriTres.BookII,ChapterXXVII.1533.

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Plate4 Plate5 Plate6

Plates 1 3 illustrate three aspects of the human geometry we already understand. Plate 1 illustrates thatthenavelisthecenterofthebodywhenthearmsareraisedabovetheshoulderline,andinthis stancethebodyisinscribedinacircle(thegreatcircletobeexact).ThecircleabovetheheadinPlate1 representsthefullheightofthearmsraisedabovethehead.Plate2illustratesthatthehumanbodyis inscribedinasquare(thegreatsquare)whenthearmsareheldperpendiculartothebody,sothatthe arm span is equal to the human height. In this stance, the groin is the center of the body. Plate 3 illustratesthatwhenthearmsareraisedtotheirfullheightabovetheheadthebodyfitsintothegreat circle,which,inthisillustration,thecirclecanbeinscribedinsideofasquare;inthisstancethenavelis thecenterofthebody.Plate4demonstratesthesamegeometricconsequencesasPlate1,butwitha newfeature:whenthearmsareraisedabovetheshouldersandthefeetareswungoutwardawayfrom theverticalcenterlineofthebody,thehumanisstillinscribedinthesamegreatcircleandthenavelis still the center of the body. Therefore, Plate 4 illustrates that when the legs are swung outward the navelliesonthecenterlineofthelegs,i.e.thelegsappeartohingeuponthenavel.DiVinciillustrates the same geometry in his sketch of the Vitruvian Man. Therefore all these plates logically fit the geometricconstructofthehumanbodywehaveproposedabove. Plates5and6illustratesomethingsthatseemratherforced,asifthehumanbodycouldnotactuallybe inaccordancewithanothersquareformedbythearmsandlegsasdiagonals,whichmeansthissquareis smallerthanthegreatsquare;aswellasthepentagram.Thelattermayseemmoremysticallycontrived ratherthananactualhumangeometry. LetusseehowPlate5worksfirst.Agrippaisnottheonlyonetoproposethisgeometry,asthesame geometry is proposed by Cesare Cesariano in his Italian translation of Vitruviuss De Architectura in 1521,twelveyearsbeforeAgrippasDeOcculta.OfthetwowoodcutsCesarianoillustratesdepictingthe VitruvianCanonofProportionsthefollowingappearstohavesomegeometriclogicwithinit,primarily thatatsomepointahumancanraisethearmsandlegstosomespecificandrespectiveheightsothata squarecanbeplacedwithinthegreatcircle,andthesquarescornerslieonthecircumferenceofthe circle.

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 Ceasianos woodcut establishes the navel as the center, therefore the circle present here is the same great circle concerning us. When the legs swing outward they always lay within the great circle, and, therefore,thedistancefromthenaveltothetipsofthefingerswillalwaysbeequaltothedistancefrom thenaveltothecenterofthefeet.So,eventhoughthenavelwillnotbethecenterofthesquare,itwill stillbethecenterofthebodyduetothelimbsrelationshiptothecircle(i.e.theirequallength/radius). Logically,ifthelegsareswungoutwardwithinthegreatcircle,thenthearmscanberaisedtoforma squareinaccordancewiththelegs.Thiscanbedemonstratedthroughaseriesofiterativediagramsthat illustratehowthegreatsquarechangespositionandsizewhenthearmsandlegsareraisedorlowered inrelationtothegreatcircle,andviceversa. Iftheprocessstartswithastatichuman,i.e.ahumanwithitsarmsraisedperpendiculartothebody, onlythegreatsquareisgenerated.Butifonlythearmsareraisedtotheheightofthehead,thenthe greatcircleisgeneratedandthesquarenolongerapplies. Actually,atanymomentinwhichthearmsareraisedmorethanexactlyperpendiculartothebody,the great square no long applies. It is when the arms are at headheight or higher that the great circle is generated.Butcertainlytherecomesapointwhenthearmsareraisedsohighthatthecirclenolonger applies. This occurs roughly when the arms are raised almost straight up. Once the arms are raised completelyuprightthenthisistheheightofthecrestofthegreatcircle.Herethefingertipscannotbe onthegreatcirclescircumferencebecausethecrestofacirclecannotlieintwodifferentpointsthat aremorethantheshouldersbreadthapart.Inotherwords,thetangentialcrestofthecircle(assuming some arbitrary orientation) cannot be determined by points R and L, which could be denoted by the right and left arms respectively, if they do not share the same position on the circumference of the circle. Todemonstrate,whenthearmsareperpendiculartothebodythegreatsquareisgenerated,andwhen theyareraisedtotheheightoftheheadthesquarenoappliesandthegreatcircleisgenerated.

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Ifthearmsremainatheadheightandthelegsareswungoutwardtoacertainpointthenthesquareis regenerated.ThisispreciselywhatDaVinciisdepictinginhissketch:thestatichumansuperimposedon thehumanwiththearmsraisedtoheadheightandthelegsswungout.Itisclearinthisstancethatthe newsquareissmallerthanthegreatsquareofthestatichuman.

Ifthearmsandlegsareraisedalittlebitmore,thesquarewillbecomeevensmaller.Therethencomes thepointinwhichallforcornersofthesquarewilllayonthecircumferenceofthegreatcircle,sothat thediagonalsofthesquareareequaltothediameterofthecircle.Itcanthereforebeestablishedhere, withabsolutecertainty,thattheperceivederrorbetweenthegreatsquareandgreatcircleinDaVincis sketchisonlytheresultofdynamichumangeometries.Ifthisiterativeprocessofraisingthearmsand legs is viewed in reverse, then the great square naturally and logically falls into place. It is quite clear heretorealizethatnaturedoesdesignindynamics,andthatnaturewouldaccountforitsgeometriesin motionaswellatastaticstance.

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It is also clear that Agrippas human geometry shown in Plate 5 and Cesarianos woodcut are correct. Additionally, this is corroborated by Albrecht Drers interpretation of the Vitruvian Man.13 Similar to DrersillustrationisWilliamBlakeswatercolorGladDay(1794).

AlbrechtDrersProportionofMan

WilliamBlakesGladDay

Thusthesquareisatitsmaximumsizewhenthehumanassumesthestaticstance,whenthearmsare held perpendicular to the body and the legs are not swung outward; as wellas when the groin is the centerofthebody.Likewise,thesquareisatitsminimumsizewhenthearmsarelegsareraisedsothat thecenterofthesquaresharesthesamepositionasthecenterofthecircle(thenavel).Itseemsthatas ifthegreatcircleandsquaredidnotoverlapinthefirstplace,thisproblemwouldntexistatall.Butit cannowbeunderstoodthereasonforthisoverlap,asnaturedesignsinmotion(andthatmotiondoes notcomefroma0.6%errorbyLeCorbusier). Inordertoavoidconfusion,itmustbenotedherethatthesegeometriesarepossible,butwhetheror not if they are natural or comfortable to perform is another matter. If we are trying to map the geometries of the human body, one thing that may be noticed is that the distance from the humeral headtothegreatsquareisnotequaltothedistancefromthehumeralheadtothecrestofthegreat circle.Sohowcanthisgeometrybepossible?Wouldnotthearmarcoutsideofthegreatcircleatsome
13

Drer,Albrect.VierBchervonMenschlicherProportion.Nremberg.1528.

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point?Althoughthisistrue,wemuststressthatnaturedesignsinmotionandnotstatics.Theheadof theshoulderisnotafixedpointthatthearmswingsaroundabout.Becauseoftheshoulderbladethe headofthehumerushasflexibilityinitsposition.Sowhenthearmisupraisedtheheadoftheshoulder ishigher,andwhenthearmisdowntheheadofthehumerusislower.Iftheshoulderwasafixedhinge, thenahuman(andallprimates)wouldnotbeabletoliftthearmsabovethehead(atleastnoteasily). Primateswouldcertainlyhavehadahardtimeclimbingaroundinthetrees. This image of the arm upraised above the shoulder line is really nothing new. Aside from literal depictionsoftheVitruvianMan,thesamestanceisineverycrucifixion.Themosttypicalrepresentation duringtheMiddleAgesandtheProtoRenaissancedepictsChristwiththearmsraisedtotheheightof the head. The Talisman of Orpheus from the 3rd Century BCE depicts Orpheus crucified with arms at headheight.SaintAndrewwascrucifiedoncruxdecussata,orXshapedcross,butcommonlyreferred toasasaltire.Depictionsofhiscrucifixionsshoweitherthearmsraisedtoheadheight,withthelegs partedinaccordancewiththeangleofthecross,whichwouldnotintersectorthogonally;orthebeams ofthecrossdointersectorthogonally(ata90angle)andheassumesthepositioninwhichthesquareis fullyinscribedwithinthegreatcircle.ButwhetherthecrucifixionisofSaintPeter,Jesus,SaintAndrew, Orpheus / Bacchus, Mithra, Krishna, et cetera, they all depict, in some fashion, the Vitruvian Canon. ImagesandstatuesofHindudeitieswithmultiplearmsandlegsdepictmuchthesamecanon,albeitnot allthesecultureswerefamiliarwithVitruvius.

Crucifixion RaffaelloSanzio(1503CE)

TalismanofOrpheus 3rdCenturyCE CrucifixionofSaintAndrew 14thCenturyCE

BeforemovingforwardsandanalyzingAgrippashumanandthepentacleweneedtofullyaddressthe nature of the extra lengths flanking outside of the body created by the circle. It has now been establishedthatthecircleistheresultofdynamicanthropometrics.Buttheextralengthmustsomehow fit into the human geometry and be accounted for in some manner by our proportioning system (i.e. fromtheasymptoticgrid,oravariationfromit).Ifthesedimensionsofthecirclecouldbeaccountedfor withwhatwehavebeenworkingwithsofar,therewouldbenoproblem.Unfortunatelyourproposed system needs further development in order to do so. Here we will look at another little key to the human geometry that Da Vinci gives us in his sketch: notice that Da Vinci places lines at several key 19

bodilymoments,andnoticethedistancesbetweenthem.Althoughtheselinesdonotalwaysalignwith the anthropometricasymptotic grid, what Da Vinci is illustrating is the proportions of squares that proportionally enlarge from the head in order to divide the human in the square into fourths and eighths.

DaVinciillustratesthatthisextrawidthcreatedbygreatcircleisoneeighthofthearmsspan(orbody height), and therefore its dimension is half the breadth of the shoulder. Although in his sketch this seems correct, it is actually in error by 5.6% of being one eighth of the arm span. It may have been noticedearlierintheanthropometricgridthatsomeofthelinesdonotalignwithDaVincislines,but thenagainhisdrawingisonlyasketchandismeanttoexploreanidea,nottofinalizeit.Butiftheour proposed geometric construct is revisited, we discover that Da Vinci is somewhat correct : the extra breadth of the great circle is half the breadth of the shoulders in the geometric construct proposed earlier.Hereitcanbeillustratedthatlengthxishalfthebreadthoftheshoulders,aswellastheextra lengthproducedbythegreatcircleandthatthetwoareequal.Asaconsequenceofthisgeometry,the finalareaofthisgeometry(thatisofthesquareinscribingthegreatcircle)is42.

LengthAB=x

BreadthofShoulders=ExtraLengthofCircle

Isthisnecessarilyso?Indeeditis.Iftwosimilar4545righttrianglesareconstructedsothateachof theirhypotenuseshorizontallydividethegreatsquare,andthesquareinscribingthegreatcircle,equally andrespectively,thentheverticaldistancebetweenthetwohypotenuseswillbeequaltothehorizontal 20

distancebetweenthetwothecorresponding45vertices.Thisistrueforallsimilarsquaresthatsharea commonedge,anduponthatcommonedgeacommonmidpoint.Butinthehumangeometrythiscase andproofisratherspecial. Itcanthenbeestablishedheretherelationshipbetweenthetwobodilycenters,i.e.thenavelandthe groin, and the consequences of the great square in relation to the great circle when the body is in motion.Asthearmsriseabovetheshoulderlineandthelegsareswungoutward,thesquarediminishes in size. Consequently as this happens the center of the square approaches the center of circle, until finallythetwocenterssharethesameposition.Wewillaccountmorefullyonhowtheanthropometric asymptoticgridcanaccountforthisextralengthcreatedbythegreatcircleshortly. Soasthearmsrisehigherandthelegsswingmoreoutward,thesquarediminishesinsizeuntilthetwo centers unite at the navel. Can the same be true for the circle? Can the circle diminish in size to the point that the circles center lays upon the center of the groin? This is what is depicted in Plate 6 by Agrippa : that if the arms are lowered to a certain degree and the legs swung outward to a certain degree the human will rest upon a pentagram, with the groin as the center. A similar depiction is featured in Robert Fludds alchemal and occult philosophical treatise The Metaphysical, Physical, and TechnicalHistoryoftheTwoWorlds,publishedin1617,depictingmanasamicrocosmoftheuniverse, andtheuniverseasamacrocosmofman.

DestinybyRobertFludd(1617)

Thequestionis:doesthisreallywork?Asthelegsswingoutwardtheyalwaysfallonthegreatcircle,a circlewhosecenterisatthenavel.How,then,canthelegsswingoutwardandliewithinasmallercircle withthegroinasthecenter? Toconsiderifthisgeometryisevencorrect,itmustfirstbeestablishedwhichpointsonthepentagram are constants. First, the crown of the head is constant, as this is the vertex of the top point of the pentagram(pointo).Second,thelegscanbeswungoutwardinordertocreatetwolowerverticesofthe pentagram, and therefore a constant. In order for two lower vertices of the pentagram to be in accordancewiththegeometriesestablishedabove,thesetwovertices(i.e.theplacementofeachfoot) mustlayonthecircumferenceofthegreatcircle(pointsmandn).Giventhesethreepointsthesizeand placementofthepentagramwillappearassuch: 21

Ascanbeseen,thetroughofthecirclethatinscribesthepentagramliesoutsidethecircumferenceof thegreatcircle.Butsomethingappearstoworkinthisinstance,astheleftandrightvertices(i.e.point x)ofthepentagramseemstoalignattheintersectionofthegreatsquareandcircle(pointz),thepoint inwhichthehandraisedtotheheightofthehead.Thoughthismayseemtrivial,itisactuallyinerrorby 0.087% of the great circles radius. Although there is a very small error in this geometry, we must rememberthattheshoulderisaflexiblemomentinthebody,sothearmscaneasilyadjusttocorrect this negligible error. We can therefore establish that it is possible for the human to be in accordance withthegeometryofthepentagram.AlthoughthisisanegligibleerrorwedonotwishtodowhatLe Corbusierdidand createexcusesfor thismild error. There could besomethingmore profound tothe natureoftheflexibilityoftheshoulderbladewithhumangeometries,andthiswillbethesubjectofa futurepaper. Although this is a possible explanation, Agrippas and Fludds depictions of the Vitruvian Man in accordancewiththepentagramisnonethelesswrongforonereason:thegroinisnotthecenterofthe body(pointA).Thisisbecausethecircleinscribingthepentagramexceedstheboundariesofthegreat square.Thepositionofthecenterofthebodyinthisstanceisactuallyabout1/64ofthebodysheight lower than the center of the groin (point B). Of course we can imagine that these geometries would appeartobeperfectandwithouterrorinthestudyorlabofa16thCenturyalchemist.Thecenterofthe bodybeing1/64ofthehumanheightlowerthanthegroiniseasilycorrectedbynotextendingthelegs outward.Butinthatcasethehumanwouldnottakeontheformofapentagram. TheHumanGeometriesandthePentagram Of all geometries the pentagram is the only one that is anthropomorphic. We can easily look at a pentagramandseeahead,arms,legs,armpits,agroin,andatorso.Mysticallythepentagramhasbeen considered a humanist symbol, an esoteric geometry that represents the human. But could the pentagram have any further implications toward the human geometry? Indeed it does. In fact, the pentagramisacorollarytothecreationofthehumangeometricconstructdescribedabove,asitfollows theexactsameproportioningsystemastheasymptoticanthropometricgrid. 22

Itisalreadywellknownthatthepentagramhasgoldenmeanproperties.Forinstance,thelinesegment A and C are segmented into a golden mean by point B, so that line AB = and line BC = , and therefore line AC = . Likewise line AD is segmented into a golden mean by point C, so consequently thatlineAC=andlineCD=,andthereforelineAD=.

In looking at this geometry some things can readily be established : lines ABC and ACD are golden means in the same manner described above. In this respect the square of line ABC will produce the golden mean ACD, so that squares ACGE and BDHF will be equal. In this instance square ACGE is bisectedontwoaxesintogoldenmeans.

Itappearsthatthemeanstocreatethehumangeometry(thatisourproposaltocorrectLeCorbusiers two adjacent squares from a golden mean problem) is inherently embedded into the pentagram. But wherearetheothervertices?Whereistheothersquare,sothatthisistwoadjacentsquares?Itseems to be a bit of a riddle, but the other vertices are on the pentagram. We will now demonstrate one possibilityofthetwoadjacentsquaresandthegoldenmeanandtheirrelationshipstothepentagramIt mustbenotedthatthereareafewotherpossibilities. Ifwetakeapentagramwithapointaandapointrastwoneighboringverticesonthepentagram,anda linebrisdrawnsothatbrisperpendiculartolineab,sothatpointsb,c,andralllayonthesameline: then line ab is squared in order to create a square abcd (Figure I). Next construct a golden rectangle aefdfromsquareabcd.Intheconstructionofgoldenrectangleaefdthelineefisalignedwithvertexq ofthepentagram,sothatpointse,f,andqalllayonthesameline(FigureII). 23


FigureI

FigureII

Followingtheprocessestablishedearlier,squarethegoldenrectangleaefdinordertocreateasquare aegi,whichissegmentedintotwogoldenmeansontwoperpendicularaxesbylinesbhanddf,inthat lines bh and df are equal (Figure III). Still following the exact same process, then render a golden rectangleajkifromsquareaegi,sothatlinejkarealignedwiththevertexsonthepentagram,inthat pointsj,k,andsalllayonthesameline.Itcanthereforebeestablishedthatlineksisthecenterlineof thepentagram(FigureIV).Thereforesquaresaegiandbjkhareequal.

FigureIII

FigureIV

Finallytheoriginalsquareisdoubled,thatissquarelineeg,whichliesuponvertexlofthepentagram. Thereforesquaresaegi=bjkh=elmg(FigureV).Wehavechosentodemonstratethisparticularmeans offormingthetwosquaresfromthegoldenmeanforareason:iflengthalis,thenlengthauis, aswasestablishedabove.Thisisacriticalmeasurementinorderforthepentagramtobeinaccordance withtheanthropometricasymptoticgrid.

FigureV

FigureVI

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InFigureVII,ifthelengthofonelineonpentagramYis,thenthelengthofonelineofpentagram Xis.ThereforepentagramXiscreatedfrompentagramYviathegoldenmean.SoifpentagramYis movedtotheothersideofpentagramXaspentagramZisinrelationtopentagramX,sothat pentagramsYandZareequal.

FigureVII

Although this is technically disassembling and rearranging the geometry, something we argue nature does not do, this is actually a form of fractalizing the pentagram. Although it seems that the smaller pentagram was created and then moved, both are actually logical and legitimate means of creating a pentagramthateitherisenlargedbythegoldenmeanordiminished.Inbothcasesthreepointsofthe originally pentagram are used to construct the new pentagram, and three points is typically the minimumnumberofpointsnecessaryforproof.InthecaseofpentagramZitcanbeseeninFigureVI thatlengthalisequaltolengthrt,andthatthetwolinesegmentsareparallelintheparallelogramaltr. ThereforeitcanbeestablishedthatthefollowingFiguresVIIIandIXofpentagramspairsaretrue:

FigureVIII FigureIX

If a third pentagram is added that is the golden mean of one of the other pentagrams, then the following illustrates that fractalizing pentagrams by the golden mean are in accordance with the two adjacent squares geometry (Figure X). Therefore in Figure X if pentagram A is , then pentagram B is equalto,andpentagramCequals.Ifthisprocesscontinuesandafourthpentagramisadded (FigureXI),thentheinitialtwosquaresbygoldenmeannolongerapply.But,sincethepentagramsB,C, andDareproportionatelysimilartopentagramsA,B,andCthenasmallertwosquarescanbeapplied to pentagrams B, C, and D. This new twosquares BCD is diminished from twosquares ABC by (or dividedby).OnecaneasilyseetwosquaresBCDsrelationshiptotwosquaresABCasafractal. 25


FigureX

FigureXI

IfafifthpentagramEisadded(FigureXII)thenapatternemerges,namelythatthisprocessechoesthe asymptoticgridcreatedearlier(FigureXIII).

FigureXII

FigureXIII

Since it can now be established that the proportions of a pentagram are a direct corollary to the proportions contained in the human body, at this point it will be interesting to see how these five pentagramsarerelatedtothehumangeometry,particularlyontheanthrogeometricconstruct(Figure XIV). In looking at how the pentagrams relate to the geometric construct in this manner numerous anthropometricscanbecorroborated,andsomenewonescanbeaccountedfor. For instance, if two neighboring vertices a and b of pentagram A lay on the initial square (that is the squarethatcreatedthisgeometry),thenvertexcofthepentagramisverticallyalignedwiththeextra widthcreatedbythegreatcircle.Likewise,thecorrespondingvertexofcisd,andvertexdislaysupon the vertical centerline of the whole geometric construct. If pentagram B is the golden mean of pentagramA,thenthecenterlineofpentagramBisalignedwiththeshoulderline.Furthermorethefull lengthofalinesegmentfrompentagramBisequaltothelengthofonearmfromtheshouldertothe finger tips (line ab). Pentagram C is the golden mean of pentagram B, and its centerline is also the vertical centerline of the whole geometry, and therefore the vertical line of symmetry for the whole 26

body. The full length of one of the line segments of pentagram C is equal to the breadth of the shoulders.AndsocenterlineofpentagramE(thegoldenmeanofthegoldenmeanofpentagramC)is alsoalignedwiththeshoulder.

FigureXIV

Thus far, it seems that the point which these diminishing pentagrams approach (point x) is rather meaningless and just sits somewhere randomly on the construct. Or does length ax actually measure somethingonthebody?Indeeditdoes.Ifthefractlizingpentagramscontinueadinfinitum(FigureXV), thentheangleofaxcis36,whichisalsotheinteriorangleofanypinnacleonapentagram(FigureXVI).

FigureXV FigureXVI

Therefore,incomparingtheangleoftheapproachingpentagramstowardpointxtotheirrespective twosquaresgeometryinFigureVIII,itcanbeestablishedthatthepointtowardwhichthediminishing twosquaregeometriesareapproachingisalsopointx.Theangleinwhichthefractalizingtwosquares areapproachingpointxis54(halftheinteriorangleofapentagon,orhalfof108).Thereforetheangle ofthefractalizingpentagrams(36)iscomplementarytotheangleofthefractalizingtwosquares(54). Inotherwords,theybothapproachpointxatanglesthataddupto90(FigureXVII).

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FigureXVII

Placing the fractalizing pentagrams as they are in Figure XIV only accounts for horizontal anthropometrics,butitdoesnotaccountforverticalmeasurements.Consequentlythelengthofaxin Figure XIV is also the height of the human (or the arm span). Since the length of ax is equal to the humanheight(fromheadtoheels),andthefractalizingpentagramsareinaccordancewiththeprocess of creating the anthropometricasymptotic grid, then the pentagrams should also be able to establish verticalmeasurements.AndinFigureXVIIItheydosoindeed.

FigureXVIII

Soitseemswehavecomefullcircle.Actuallywehavecomemorethanfullcircle;morelikeacircleand ahalf.Wecaneasilyseethebeautyandwonderinnaturesdesigns.Itseemsasifwehaveanewmeans ofadmiringtheproportions,geometries,andmeasurementsofourownbodies.Throughoutthecourse ofthisessay,wehaveintenselystudiedvariousgeometriesinrelationtothehumanbodyand anthropometrics(bothstaticanddynamic).Afinalaspectlefttoadmireisthenumericsofhuman 28

proportionsinaccordancewiththefractalizingtwosquaregeometry.Startingwithanyofthetwo squaresbygoldenmeangeometries,therateatwhichtheyincreasecanbeseeninFigureXIX.

FigureXIX

Ifthispatterncontinuesthenaratherinterestingcuriosityoccurs: HorizontalGrowth: 2 2 3 3 52 52 83 83 135 135 218 218 etcetera VerticalGrowth: 2 3 52 83 135 218 3413

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Horizontally,themeasurementsareincreasingby+n(wherenisthepreviousvalueestablishedby increasingby).Vertically,theysimplyincreaseby,andthereforediminishby,or1/.Itisrather curiousthatinthisnumericsystemthenumbersmultipliedwitheitherorfollowtheFibonacci series,whichdemonstratesthatwhenanyofthenumbersoftheseriesaredividedbytheprevious numberthenthevaluesarealways,or1.618033989...Butthenagain,phihasaverypeculiarhabitof repeatingitself. Wehavetoadmitthatmuchofwhathasbeendiscussedinthispaperhasbeentheresultofcorrecting verytrivialerrors.Butthenagain,itsupportsthattheageoldclichlittlethingsdomatterhassome justifications. Weusuallyregardourbodiesasamerevesselthatonlyexiststogetourbrainsfromplacetoplace, whetheritisfromonemeetingtoanother,orfromtheofficetohome,orpointAtopointB.Wehope thispaperilluminatessomeofthebeautiful(andevenmystical)qualitiesofthesevesselsweinhabitfor thedurationofourlives,andevenitsrelationshiptosimpleideas,likeapentagramorasquare. Sowhatisnext?Nextwecantrythegeometriesofthehumaninprofile PatrickM.Dey DamianPiLanningham 5January2011 TheOpenProblemSociety Edited5September2011

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Bibliography: Agrippa,HeinrichCornelius.ThreeBooksofOccultPhilosophy.Trans.JamesFreake.Woodbury,MN: LlewelynPublications.1992. Drer,Albrect.FourBooksonHumanProportion.Nremberg,Germany:HieronymusFormschneyder. 1528. Fludd,Robert.TheMetaphysical,Physical,andTechnicalHistoryoftheTwoWorlds.1617. LeCorbusier.TheModulor.Trans.PeterdeFranciaandAnnaBostock.Basel,Switzerland:Birkhuser Publishers.2004 NationalCenterforSocialResearch.HealthSurveyforEngland2008.UnitedKingdom:NationalCenter forSocialResearch.2009. NationalCenterforHealthStatistics.AnthropometricReferenceDataforChildrenandAdults:United States20032006,Number10,October22,2008.Hayattsville,Maryland:NationalCenterfor HealthStatics.2008. Pollio,MarcusVitruvius.TheTenBooksonArchitecture.Trans.MorrisHickyMorgan.Mineola,NewYork :DoverPublications,Inc.1960. Pollio,MarcusVitruvius.DeArchitectura.Trans.CesareCesariano.Como,Italy.1521. FurtherReading: Elam,Kimberly.GeometryofDesign.Princeton,NewJersey:PrincetonArchitecturalPress.2001. Livio,Mario.TheGoldenRation:TheStoryofPhi,TheWorldsMostAstonishingNumber.NewYork,New York:BroadwayBooks.2002. Padovan,Richard.Proportion:Science,Philosophy,Architecture.NewYork,NewYork:SponPress.1999. Skinner,Stephen.SacredGeometry:DecipheringtheCode.NewYork,NewYork:SterlingPublishingCo. 2009.

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