Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Magic Squares, Cubes, and Hypercubes: From Ancient Origins to Recent Advances
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Inscribed on a wall near the entrance of the majestic Parshvanath Jain Temple in Khajuraho, India (built around 960 CE) is a 4 × 4 magic square with remarkable arithmetic properties. We will explain why this magic square is the unique one of its kind, up to certain transformations. This answers a question posed by the legendary geometer HSM Coxeter in 1938. We will also explain why there is a unique such magic object in every dimension.
Magic Squares, Cubes, and Hypercubes: From Ancient Origins to Recent Advances
~
Inscribed on a wall near the entrance of the majestic Parshvanath Jain Temple in Khajuraho, India (built around 960 CE) is a 4 × 4 magic square with remarkable arithmetic properties. We will explain why this magic square is the unique one of its kind, up to certain transformations. This answers a question posed by the legendary geometer HSM Coxeter in 1938. We will also explain why there is a unique such magic object in every dimension.
