GAMES & PUZZLES MATHEMATICS A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z                    HOME ABOUT CATEGORIES SITE MAP COPYRIGHT ADVERTISE CONTACT entire Web this site MacMahon squares MacMahon 3-color squares The concept of color-matching tiles based on all the permutations of colors on their edges dates from 1926, when Percy MacMahon invented and introduced Three-Color Squares and Four-Color Triangles as mathematical pastimes. MacMahon divided squares and triangles into triangles to give each edge of a piece its own color, in all possible combinations. Each set contains 24 different tiles, and MacMahon discovered that they could form a single figure with all adjacent edges matching and just one color all around the outside border. The most extensive research into these sets, over three decades, was done by the American engineer Wade Philpott (1918-1985), of Lima, Ohio, who identified all the possible symmetrical shapes that MacMahon squares and triangles could solve with both matching edge colors and uniform border color, and who calculated all the numbers of solutions for the MacMahon squares' 4 × 6 rectangle. MacMahon 4-color triangles Related entry    • Thirty Colored Cubes puzzle Related categories    • GAMES AND PUZZLES    • MATHEMATICS Recommended products Nice sets of MacMahon Squares and MacMahon Triangles are available from Kadon Enterprises, Inc. in lasercut acrylic. For more details, go here. Also on this site: Encyclopedia of Alternative Energy & Sustainable Living Encyclopedia of History Transport Concepts & Designs (partner site) BACK TO TOP