Benjamin Franklin and the Magic Square

Be always ashamed to catch yourself idle and Industry need no wish, dais Poor Richard, Ben
Franklins alter ego. This was the kind of adice that he, Franklin, had a!!lied to himself years earlier on a
tri! to "ngland, long #efore the $merican Reolution when he had !roudly thought of himself as an
"nglishman. %hile traeling, he had s!ent time with a friend who introduced him to the wonders of
$l#recht &urers magic s'uare.
%hat a shame it is, he was told, that "uro!eans and een Frenchmen are a#le to create the
mathematical !u((les, #ut no "nglishman has yet #een a#le to formulate one. $l#recht &urer, a )erman
engraer and !ainter who had lied a#out *++ years #efore Franklin, had used his magic s'uare in a highly
sym#olic engraing call ,elencolia I. ,any !eo!le thought of these !u((les sim!ly as an amusement,
while others including Franklin saw a chance to e-!eriment with the science of num#ers.
Franklins friend told him that one Frenchman had s!ent his life working to deelo! three num#er
s'uares. Franklin acce!ted this challenge to his /ing and his country, and created two that ery eening0
%hat is the mystery of the ,agic 1'uare of &urer2
It is in the way the num#ers line u! and relate to one another. It is a grid of si-teen #o-es 333 four
u! and four down. "ach #o- contains a different num#er, one to si-teen.
If each column is added, the sum of each is 45.
If each row is added, the sum again of each is 45.
$dd them diagonally. They total 45.
&urers magic s'uare was gien mystical homage #y many, and it was worn as a good luck charm.
Perha!s that was #ecause the three and four in 45 add u! to #e seen, another num#er gien magical
!owers #y some. Perha!s it had to do with that fact that the year 6765 a!!eared in these s'uares and this
was the date of &urers engraing. %hateer the reason, we can #e sure that the mind of Ben8amin Franklin
was on the more intellectual meaning of the num#er s'uares.
$ magic s'uare can #e 4 #y 4, 5 #y 5, 7 #y 7, and higher. They all share the hori(ontal, ertical,
and diagonal relationshi! shown in &urers 5 #y 5 s'uare. But &urers magic s'uare went further.
$dd the four corners.
9heck out the middle four num#ers.
:ow add the middle two on each side.
$nd the middle two on the to! and #ottom.
$s if this were not enough, each of the four num#ers in the u!!er left, u!!er right, lower left, and
lower right 'uadrants also add u! to 45.
:ow try your hand at making your own magic s'uare. Try using the num#ers one through nine in a grid,
three u! and three down. :o two num#ers may #e used twice. They will add u! to 67. ;!, down, and
diagonally.