Через лабиринты В математику (this page in Russian).
Skozi labirinti za matematiko (this page in Slovenian).
Через лабіринти до математики (this page in Ukrainian).
Läpi sokkeloihin Matematiikka (this page in Finnish).
Át mazes a matematika (this page in Hungarian).
Prostredníctvom labyrintov k matematike (this page in Slovak).
ผ่านเขาวงกตคณิตศาสตร์ (this page in Thai).
Кроз Лавиринти до Математике (this page in Serbian).
Přes bludiště až matematiky (this page in Czech).
Des Labyrinthes aux Mathématiques (this page in French).
Prin Mazes Ia Matematică (this page in Romanian).
Labirentten Matematiğe (this page in Turkish).
Математикаға лабиринттер арқылы (this page in Kazakh).
მეშვეობით ლაბირინთები რომ მათემატიკა (this page in Georgian).
Przez labirynty do matematiki (this page in Polish).
Läbi labürintide matemaatikani (this page in Estonian).
Kroz labirinte do matematike (this page in Croatian).
ПРЕКУ ЛАВИРИНТИ ДО МАТЕМАТИКА (this page in Macedonian).
从迷宫到数学 (this page in Chinese).
Through Mazes to Mathematics


This late 12th Century manuscript maze (13cm in diameter) is in the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich (Clm. 14731, Fol 82 v.). The text above the maze reads CUM MINOTHAURO PUGNAT THESEUS [IN] LABORINTO. = Theseus fights with the Minotaur in the Labyrinth.


Click for larger image.

The maze design was clearly intended to be the 12-level simple, alternating, transit maze with level sequence 0 3 2 1 4 7 6 5 8 11 10 9 12, a common maze in medieval manuscripts, but the 11th level was taken over by the center image (traces of it are still visible); level 8 is led directly to the center; levels 9 and 10 are now cut off from the rest of the path, and have been joined separately to the center. The topological meaning of the maze has been sacrificed to the visual impact of the composition.

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Tony Phillips
Math Dept SUNY Stony Brook
tony at math.stonybrook.edu

September 23, 2020