Handwritten letter in French sent to Lagrange by a mathematician, “Guillon,” three pages on two adjoining sheets, 6.5 x 8.25, 1798. The letter proposes to solve one of the three great mathematical problems of antiquity, the ‘Angle Trisection.’ In part (translated): "I initially established first principle that when two intersecting at an angle, if one passes through the center and the outer portion of the other is equal to the radius, the convex and concave arcs between these two intersecting among them is 1:3.” He illustrates four related figures on a separate sheet, affixed to the last page by one corner. In fine condition. The angle trisection problem concerns the ability to divide any angle into three equal parts using only a compass and straightedge—a classical problem of ancient Greek mathematics that was proved impossible to accomplish in 1837. Lagrange, the recipient of this letter, made enormous contributions to the fields of analysis, number theory, and both classical and celestial mechanics, and succeeded Leonhard Euler as the director of mathematics at the Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin. Pre-certified PSA/DNA.
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