Pierro Della Francesca was both a mathematician and an artist
of the highest accomplishment.. He can be regarded as one of
the true pioneers of the method of rendering in perspective.
His paintings display a virtuoso geometrical ability, both in
the architecture of the buildings and landscapes shown, and
also in the hidden skeleton of his works which is not
explicitly depicted.In the above work, it is possible to
uncover a hidden pentagonal geometry which regulates the
placement of every major element in the composition. The
clear signature of this pentagon is the lower edge of the
staff which is held by the sleeping guard at an angle of
precisely 72° to the horizontal. If the length of this staff
between the top rim of the tomb and the point where it
touches the tree is taken as the side of a regular pentagon,
the figure shown above may be drawn in.
The additional lines shown result from connecting the
vertices of the pentagram, and adding verticals through the
intersection points thus generated.
It will be seen that the action of the painting conforms
remarkably with the simple geometry described. For example,
the slope of the helmet worn by the sleeping guard on the
left is given by the extension of the left hand side of the
pentagon.
Related Pages:
Grid
Construction of the regular heptagon
Hidden Geometry in Art:
Pierro
Della
Francesca:
Fra
Angelico
Fra Luca Pacioli
Denderah Zodiac
Geometrical Analysis of the East Meon Crop
Circle
