Centres of gravity of pyramids and circular segments
Locating the centroid of a cone or pyramid at a quarter of the axis, and of a semicircle
Across this opening Leonardo works out the centres of gravity of solid and plane figures. On folio 218v he proves that any pyramid or cone, of however many sides, has its centre of gravity a quarter of the way up the axis from the base, fixing it at the crossing g of two lines drawn to the base and face centres. On folio 215r he turns to plane circular segments, dividing a half-circle into eight equal triangles to find point m, and showing that a segment's diameter divides it in sesquitertial proportion at its centre of gravity K. Lettered diagrams of pyramids and a semicircle accompany the proofs.
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Centre of gravity of a cone or pyramid at a quarter of the axis
In any pyramid a b c d with base b c d and vertex a, the centre of gravity lies on the axis a f that joins the vertex to the base-centre f, a quarter of the way up from the base. A second line from angle d to the face-centre e cuts a f at g, and since the centre must lie on both lines it is fixed at their crossing g. Leonardo states the rule generally for round, triangular or square pyramids of any number of sides.
Axes of a many-sided pyramid meet at a quarter length
The three lettered figures illustrate the theorem: lines such as a f and d e rise from the angles and end at the third of the height of each face's axis. Carried on to the opposite angles, the lines cross at a quarter of their length, as shown by p t and n r meeting at the point s.
Centroid of a semicircular segment from eight triangles
A half-circle segment is cut into eight equal triangles a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, and their centres joined. Bisecting the connecting lines c d, e f, a b and g h and drawing r s, x u and finally n t, the centre of gravity of the whole segment falls at the middle of n t, the point m.
Sesquitertial division fixes a segment's centre
For a circular segment a b c on base a c with diameter b d, the centre of gravity divides b d in sesquitertial proportion, nearer the base. The cathetus is split at K so that b K is to K d as the inscribed triangle is to the leftover area, and a companion construction with the line q n locates the same point K.
