James Alan Egan

Squaring the Circle is the key to John Dee's Design for the 1599 Globe theater James Alan Egan

The intrepid historical researcher, Joy Hancox, came across a collection of 516 drawings once owned by John Byrom. Even though Byrom was a well-respected member of the Royal Society in the 1700s, his life was shrouded in mystery and intrigue. Joy has deduced that four of the drawings (shown above) were plans for the original 1599 Globe theater. And she suspects they were created by the Elizabethan polymath, John Dee (1527-1608). For 20 years James Egan has been studying the mathematician, astronomer, cartographer, and navigational expert, John Dee. To understand Dee's mathematical cosmology, Egan has translated from the original Latin, Dee's 1558 Propaedeumata Aphoristica (Preparatory Aphorisms) and his 1564 Monas Hieroglyphica (Sacred Symbol of Oneness). Like Shakespeare and other Elizabethans, John Dee was an ardent punster. By solving various word-riddles and geometric-puzzles which Dee has concealed in the 4 drawings, Egan has found what he feels are the precise proportions and dimensions for the original Globe theater. It's an intricate, yet harmonious, dance of elementary 2D and 3D shapes. Egan's conclusion: "There is only one person who could have conceived of such a brilliant plan-John Dee."