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Mathematical Treasure: Jose Fernandes Pinto Alpoim's Exame de Artilheiros

Author(s): 
Frank J. Swetz (The Pennsylvania State University)

José Fernandes Pinto Alpoim (1700–1765) was a Portuguese military engineer prominent in the development of colonial Brazil—for instance, he served as the architect for the Governor’s House, completed in 1743. In 1744 he published Exame de Artilheiros, a comprehensive arithmetic, geometry, and artillery text for the colony.

Title page of José Fernandes Pinto Alpoim's 1744 Exame de Artilheiros.

The first page of the text defines arithmetic.

First page of José Fernandes Pinto Alpoim's 1744 Exame de Artilheiros.

A discussion of the multiplication operation is supplied on pages 12–13:

Page 12 of José Fernandes Pinto Alpoim's 1744 Exame de Artilheiros. Page 13 of José Fernandes Pinto Alpoim's 1744 Exame de Artilheiros.

These images are presented courtesy of the John Carter Brown Library, Brown University. Read the full text here.

Index to Mathematical Treasures

Frank J. Swetz (The Pennsylvania State University), "Mathematical Treasure: Jose Fernandes Pinto Alpoim's Exame de Artilheiros," Convergence (September 2020)