An intriguing maths investigation took place during a recent visit to Salisbury where some of our gifted and talented students took part in some activities. The first session ‘Cracking the Sarum Code’ followed the premise that much of the magnificent medieval building at Salisbury Cathedral was constructed based on the Golden Ratio or Divine Proportion. This session looked back at the Fibonacci sequence, explained the Golden Ratio and set the students the ultimate challenge of finding out if the Cathedral’s layout really does hold these precious secrets.
The Master Builders session looked at how medieval master builders managed the process of designing windows and arches using their knowledge of mathematics.
The students were given the opportunity to try this out on paper and then put it into practice and draw their own life-size gothic arches on a mock tracing floor using giant beam compasses.