Ostomachion facts for kids
The Ostomachion is an ancient math puzzle. It's also known as loculus Archimedius, which means "Archimedes' box" in Latin. Sometimes, it's called syntomachion. This puzzle was studied by the famous Greek mathematician Archimedes.
We know about the Ostomachion from old writings. Parts of it were found in an Arabic version. A more complete copy was found in the Archimedes Palimpsest, which is an old book from Byzantine times. The word "Ostomachion" comes from Greek words. "Osteon" means "bone" and "mache" means "fight". So, it means "bone-fight". This might be because the puzzle pieces were made of bone. Some old writings call it "Stomachion", but "Ostomachion" is the correct name. The puzzle is similar to a tangram. It's not clear if Archimedes studied the puzzle first, or if the game came before his studies.
Contents
Playing the Ostomachion Puzzle
The Ostomachion is a dissection puzzle with 14 pieces. These pieces can be put together to form a perfect square.
What You Can Make
One way to play was to arrange the pieces into different shapes. People would create animals, plants, or other objects. For example, you could make an elephant, a tree, a barking dog, a ship, a sword, or a tower.
Why Play It?
Some people think the game helped young people improve their memory skills. Another idea was that the goal was to fit all the pieces back into their original box.
How Many Ways to Solve It?
Scientists have studied how many ways the 14 pieces can form a square. Researchers like Fan Chung, Persi Diaconis, Susan P. Holmes, and Ronald Graham found there are 17,152 different ways. A computer search also confirmed this number. However, some people disagree. They say that old pictures of the puzzle show it in a rectangle, not a square. Also, they believe that turning or flipping the pieces might not have been allowed in the original game.
Images for kids
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Ostomachion figures mentioned by Ausonius and others (Bibliotheca Augustana)
See also
In Spanish: Ostomachion para niños
