By Michael Hartley
The dodecahedron is a beautiful shape. One reason I like it is that it's how I found out about the Etruscans. They were a civilisation that lived in Italy before the rise of Rome. I read about them when doing research for my doctorate - I was looking up the history of regular polyhedra, and found out that the Etruscans had left behind a dodecahedron made of soapstone.
Here's a picture of a dodecahedron:
Pretty, right?
Elsewhere on this site, I have a Java Applet that lets you design and make polyhedral nets. I used the applet to make a net for a doddecahedron. A 'net' lets you make the shape out of cardboard - print it out onto card, cut it out carefully, fold along the lines, then glue according to the letters on the tabs.
Have fun!
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