History of Tessellations

Date: 12/10/95 at 18:55:53
From: Anonymous
Subject: history of tessellations

I have to answer the following three questions for my math class:

1. Definition of tessellation (I already found this on the 
   Internet)

2. History -this is the question I haven't found the answer to.  
   I know that M.C. Escher uses tessellations in his art, but who 
   thought them up or discovered them and who came up with the name?

3. A generalization on what I have discovered about which figures 
   tessellated - this I found by drawing several pictures.

So, the only question I have not found is the history.  Please 
help if possible. 

Date: 4/20/96 at 14:41:27
From: Doctor Math
Subject: Re: history of tessellations

Try this:

  http://mathforum.org/sum95/suzanne/tess.intro.html   

It's a good-sized unit on tessellations by Suzanne Alejandre, one of our 
Math Forum Teacher Associates.  It includes a section on historical and 
geographical connections at 

  http://mathforum.org/sum95/suzanne/historytess.html   

Hope this helps!

-Doctor Sarah,  The Math Forum