The Golden Number

Matila C Ghyka; trans. Jon E Graham Inner Traditions 2016 Hb, 434pp, illus, notes, ind, $37.94, ISBN 9781594771002

Although there had been editions in other languages since the first publication of this venerable study in 1931, this is its first appearance in English, in elegant translation and a handsome printing. Prince Matila Ghyka was a Romanian mathematician, historian, philosopher, novelist and poet who served in the French navy, taught æsthetics in the USA and served his country as a minister in London twice between 1936 and 1940. Because of his interest in the relationship of mathematics to art, he was attracted to Pythagorean philosophy and delighted in its practical applications (e.g. in geometry and architecture) and natural expressions in nature (e.g. in the spirals of shells, or the spacing of flower petals). The core of this ancient philosophy was the secret (originally known only to the Pythagorean cult initiates) of a ‘magical’ relationship (known as phi) of parts to a whole (also known as the Golden Number or Golden Ratio). While some critics have called the text dull or plodding (what can they expect from erudite and intelligent prose written 85 years ago?) Ghyka more than makes up for it in the brilliance of his insights and profuse illustrations. What lifts this tome even further above the ordinary are the philosophical and historical diversions (even chapters) upon Pythagoras and his followers over centuries and their effects upon the societies in which they lived. Some of the subjects touched upon are the relationships of numbers to harmony in music and poetry; the chains of Pythagorean knowledge that link maths, geometry, music, art and architecture from the 5th century BC, through the Reformation and into the present (indeed, the Golden Ratio is still taught to design students throughout Europe to this day); the proportions of temples and cathedrals; the evolution of forms; how the Pythagorean symbol of life (a pentagram) became a symbol of evil through the historical persecution of secretive cults; lunar cycles and other natural rhythms’; Masonic symbolism; Gnosticism and alchemy; and how all of these have influenced modern scientists and artists. Fascinating.