Here is a magic square of 81 cells.
| 53 | 8 | 71 | 28 | 73 | 10 | 51 | 6 | 69 |
| 62 | 44 | 26 | 19 | 37 | 55 | 60 | 42 | 24 |
| 17 | 80 | 35 | 61 | 1 | 46 | 15 | 78 | 33 |
| 66 | 21 | 30 | 14 | 59 | 50 | 34 | 79 | 16 |
| 3 | 39 | 75 | 77 | 41 | 5 | 25 | 43 | 61 |
| 48 | 57 | 12 | 32 | 23 | 68 | 70 | 7 | 52 |
| 31 | 76 | 13 | 72 | 27 | 36 | 11 | 56 | 47 |
| 22 | 40 | 58 | 9 | 45 | 81 | 74 | 38 | 2 |
| 67 | 4 | 49 | 54 | 63 | 18 | 29 | 20 | 65 |
If divided, as is shown, into 9 small squares, each of these is also a magic square, and yet another magic square is formed by the totals of these 9 squares arranged thus:—
| 396 | 333 | 378 |
| 351 | 369 | 387 |
| 360 | 405 | 342 |
This magic square, which has in its cells the first sixteen numbers, is so constructed that these add up to 34 in very many ways.
| 4 | 15 | 14 | 1 |
| 9 | 6 | 7 | 12 |
| 5 | 10 | 11 | 8 |
| 16 | 3 | 2 | 13 |
How many of these, in addition to the usual rows, columns, and diagonals, can you discover? They must, of course, be in some sort symmetrical.
Can you fill in the missing letters which are needed to turn the oft-repeated “u” below into rhyming verse:—
| 106 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 13 | 109 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 113 | 16 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | 110 | 107 | 15 | |||||||||||||||||
| 42 | 9 | 11 | 100 | 78 | ||||||||||||||||
| 74 | 81 | 112 | 10 | 56 | 71 | |||||||||||||||
| 67 | 53 | 87 | 111 | 83 | 43 | 34 | ||||||||||||||
| 27 | 49 | 50 | 35 | 59 | 63 | 84 | 6 | |||||||||||||
| 96 | 26 | 46 | 72 | 68 | 39 | 37 | 115 | 7 | ||||||||||||
| 30 | 95 | 97 | 76 | 75 | 33 | 85 | 3 | 116 | 114 | |||||||||||
| 91 | 31 | 28 | 94 | 40 | 61 | 82 | 120 | 2 | 5 | 117 | ||||||||||
| 92 | 90 | 25 | 64 | 89 | 47 | 41 | 119 | 121 | 8 | |||||||||||
| 29 | 93 | 58 | 62 | 54 | 69 | 86 | 4 | 118 | ||||||||||||
| 32 | 66 | 60 | 57 | 73 | 52 | 80 | 1 | |||||||||||||
| 44 | 79 | 65 | 19 | 45 | 48 | 36 | ||||||||||||||
| 51 | 38 | 104 | 18 | 55 | 70 | |||||||||||||||
| 88 | 22 | 103 | 105 | 77 | ||||||||||||||||
| 99 | 23 | 20 | 102 | |||||||||||||||||
| 100 | 98 | 17 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 21 | 101 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 24 | ||||||||||||||||||||
In this ingenious diamond all rows and both diagonals add up to 671; in the four corner diamonds all add up to 244; and in the central diamond, and the 16 rows of threes surrounding it, to 183.
Here is a magic square, in which the rows, columns, and diagonals yield the same product, 4096, by multiplication:—
| 128 | 1 | 32 |
| 4 | 16 | 64 |
| 8 | 256 | 2 |
It will be seen that the numbers in this square, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, are in regular progression, and 4096 is also the cube of the central 16.
Here is quite a good example of a bordered magic square of sixty-four cells:—
| 1 | 56 | 55 | 11 | 53 | 13 | 14 | 57 |
| 63 | 15 | 47 | 22 | 42 | 24 | 45 | 2 |
| 62 | 49 | 25 | 40 | 34 | 31 | 16 | 3 |
| 4 | 48 | 28 | 37 | 35 | 30 | 17 | 61 |
| 5 | 44 | 39 | 26 | 32 | 33 | 21 | 60 |
| 59 | 19 | 38 | 27 | 29 | 36 | 46 | 6 |
| 58 | 20 | 18 | 43 | 23 | 41 | 50 | 7 |
| 8 | 9 | 10 | 54 | 12 | 52 | 51 | 64 |
It is a perfect specimen itself, and as each border is removed a fresh perfect magic square is revealed.
A magic square can be formed with the 81 numbers from 172 to 252 inclusive, which in all its rows, columns, and diagonals will total 1908. It may interest our solvers to complete the square.
| 216 | 175 | 224 | 240 | 199 | 248 | |||
| 247 | 215 | 174 | 190 | 239 | 207 | |||
| 206 | 246 | 214 | 230 | 198 | 238 | |||
| 213 | 172 | 221 | ||||||
| 244 | 212 | 180 | ||||||
| 203 | 252 | 211 | ||||||
| 186 | 226 | 194 | 210 | 178 | 218 | |||
| 217 | 185 | 234 | 250 | 209 | 177 | |||
| 176 | 225 | 184 | 200 | 249 | 208 |
We have filled in, as a solid start, 45 of the 81 cells.
This magic square adds up in rows, columns, and diagonals to 1908:—
| 469 | 484 | 472 | 483 |
| 481 | 474 | 478 | 475 |
| 482 | 471 | 485 | 470 |
| 476 | 479 | 473 | 480 |
Can you decide in how many other symmetrical ways the same total is to be made?
In this magic square the rows, columns, and diagonals add up always to 33.
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Can you rearrange it so that the first stone (three-ace) shall occupy the centre, now filled by the double six, and it shall still add up in all ways to 33?
The arrangement of numbers in the 36 cells of this square discloses a very close affinity between chess and arithmetic.
| 30 | 21 | 6 | 15 | 28 | 19 |
| 7 | 16 | 29 | 20 | 5 | 14 |
| 22 | 31 | 8 | 35 | 18 | 27 |
| 9 | 36 | 17 | 26 | 13 | 4 |
| 32 | 23 | 2 | 11 | 34 | 25 |
| 1 | 10 | 33 | 24 | 3 | 12 |
Can you follow this out?
Those who combine a fancy for “Patience” with some skill in numbers will find amusement in filling the empty cells of this diagram with appropriate numbers, each of which must consist of two figures:—
| 17 | 24 | |||
| 32 | 46 | |||
| 14 | ||||
| 19 | 16 | |||
| 22 | 20 |
It is required that each of the rows across from side to side shall add up, when all the cells are filled, to 143 exactly. No number must be used more than once.