first six books of the elements of Euclid : in which coloured diagrams and symbols are used instead of letters for the greater ease of learners

Nearly a century before Mondrian made geometrical red, yellow, and blue lines famous, 19th century mathematician Oliver Byrne employed the color scheme for the figures and diagrams in his most unusual 1847 edition of Euclid's mathematical and geometric Elements. Byrnes idea was to use color to make learing easier and 'diffuse permanent knowledge" Byrne had already published mathematical and engineering works previous to 1847, but never anything like his edition on Euclid. This remarkable example of Victorian printing has been described as one of the oddest and most beautiful books of the 19th century.