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9 - Ancient Greek Mathematics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 January 2020

Liba Taub
Affiliation:
University of Cambridge
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Summary

This chapter is addressed to those who wish to read the original sources of Greco-Roman mathematics, either in the original languages or in modern translations. Hence, it focuses on the kinds of mathematics that was disseminated in treatises written by scholars who were members of a relatively small literary elite. This theoretical style of mathematics was not the only kind of mathematics practised in Greco-Roman antiquity, and, indeed, the total number authors of philosophical mathematics must have been dwarfed by the number of individuals who used practical mathematics in their daily work, and who passed on such mathematical skills to their sons, disciples, and apprentices. Nevertheless, the literary works produced by this self-selected group of individuals have elicited the admiration and study of mathematical scholars through the centuries, and have justly been regarded as one of the most important products of ancient scholarship.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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  • Ancient Greek Mathematics
  • Edited by Liba Taub, University of Cambridge
  • Book: The Cambridge Companion to Ancient Greek and Roman Science
  • Online publication: 17 January 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316136096.010
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  • Ancient Greek Mathematics
  • Edited by Liba Taub, University of Cambridge
  • Book: The Cambridge Companion to Ancient Greek and Roman Science
  • Online publication: 17 January 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316136096.010
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Ancient Greek Mathematics
  • Edited by Liba Taub, University of Cambridge
  • Book: The Cambridge Companion to Ancient Greek and Roman Science
  • Online publication: 17 January 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316136096.010
Available formats
×