Byrne’s Euclid: The First Six Books of the Elements of Euclid with Coloured Diagrams

The Elements and its many editions tell a story of remix and reuse across cultures and millennia. Its tradition of being the most reprinted and readapted mathematical text in history continues today. In modern times, The Elements has become renowned for its beauty and design. Attention to its aesthetics first appeared in 1847 with Oliver Byrne’s famous redesign. Byrne’s edition is beautifully minimalist and rational, notably using color (red, blue, yellow, and black) to illustrate geometric concepts. Byrne used color to distinguish between different lines and angles, and he added illustrations and diagrams to better guide students through the proofs. Byrne’s edition was regarded for its innovation and used in schools and universities. However, the cost of producing the book was high, which resulted in it not being as widely distributed as some earlier editions. Nevertheless, Byrne’s work remains an important part of the publishing history of The Elements and is considered one of, if not the most, imaginative editions. Today, Byrne’s edition of The Elements and subsequent remasters have become popular commodities in the study and appreciation of art and graphic design. It is a preeminent example of how quantitative information can be effectively conveyed with the right touch of color, thoughtful layout, and minimalist design. Despite an uncanny similarity, Bryne’s aesthetic surprisingly prefigured the de Stijl and Bauhaus design movements of the 20th century, making it truly avant-garde for its time. The Elements was first digitized by Cornell University Library in 1991, and Byrne’s edition was re-cast into a markup programming language by Slyusarev Sergey in 2017. This digitization of The Elements marked the next logical progression for the distribution and revision of this classic work. The Elements and its many editions tells a story of remix and reuse among cultures and millennia. Its tradition of being the most reprinted and readapted mathematical text in history continues today. This book is a physical print of the 0.7 edition (2019) with minor modifications, as created by Slyusarev Sergey. The text was written using MetaPost for vector graphics and ConTeXt for typesetting and layout.