Britannica Sources used in this answer

Who found the first general solution of cubic equations in Renaissance Italy?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Map of the Greco-Roman world highlighting the birthplaces of notable ancient mathematicians, marked with the pi symbol and labeled with their names. Cities such as Athens, Alexandria, Syracuse, and Miletus are shown around the Mediterranean, with modern country boundaries outlined. An inset provides detail for the region of Greece and western Anatolia. — algebra This map spans a millennium of prominent Greco-Roman mathematicians, from Thales of Miletus (c. 600 bce) to Hypatia of Alexandria (c. 400 ce).

The first general solution to the cubic equation was discovered by the Italian mathematician Scipione del Ferro at the beginning of the 16th century.1

Although del Ferro’s original work did not survive, he is credited with solving the cubic equation in the form $x^{3} + p x = q$ . The solution was later independently rediscovered by Niccolò Tartaglia. Ultimately, the method was published by Gerolamo Cardano in his 1545 work, Ars magna.213