Conics

work by Apollonius of Perga

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June 24, 2026

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The subject of conics, as detailed by Apollonius of Perga, is a branch of geometry concerning curves formed by the intersection of a plane and a cone. These curves are the circle, ellipse, hyperbola, and parabola. Apollonius, known as the "Great Geometer," wrote an eight-volume treatise titled Conics, which is considered a monumental work from antiquity.12

His work superseded earlier studies and introduced new generality by considering oblique double cones. The first four books of Conics define the ellipse, parabola, and hyperbola. Apollonius's genius is particularly evident in Book V, where he explores concepts related to curvature. The study of conics has influenced geometry in the Islamic world and provided a mathematical basis for the scientific revolution in Europe.2

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analytic geometry
Elementary analytic geometry
…1,800 years with his book Conics. He defined a conic as the intersection of a cone and a plane (see figure). Using Euclid’s results on similar triangles and on secants of circles, he found a relation satisfied by the distances from any point P of a conic to two perpendicular…
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…1,800 years with his book Conics. He defined a conic as the intersection of a cone and a plane (see figure). Using Euclid’s results on similar triangles and on secants of circles, he found a relation satisfied by the distances from any point P of a conic to two perpendicular…
Read More

Apollonius of Perga
…“the Great Geometer,” whose treatise Conics is one of the greatest scientific works from the ancient world. Most of his other treatises are now lost, although their titles and a general indication of their contents were passed on by later writers, especially Pappus of Alexandria (fl. c. ad 320). Apollonius’s…
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…“the Great Geometer,” whose treatise Conics is one of the greatest scientific works from the ancient world. Most of his other treatises are now lost, although their titles and a general indication of their contents were passed on by later writers, especially Pappus of Alexandria (fl. c. ad 320). Apollonius’s…
Read More

mathematics
Apollonius
…is best known for his Conics, a treatise in eight books (Books I–IV survive in Greek, V–VII in a medieval Arabic translation; Book VIII is lost). The conic sections are the curves formed when a plane intersects the surface of a cone (or double cone). It is assumed that the…
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…is best known for his Conics, a treatise in eight books (Books I–IV survive in Greek, V–VII in a medieval Arabic translation; Book VIII is lost). The conic sections are the curves formed when a plane intersects the surface of a cone (or double cone). It is assumed that the…
Read More