Historical origins of the nine-point conic. The contribution of Eugenio Beltrami (Q777867)

The paper is devoted to the examination of the evolution of a specific mathematical problem, i.e. the nine-point conic, a generalisation of the nine-point circle due to Steiner. The author follows the evolution from Steiner to the Neapolitan school (Trudi and Battaglini) and finally to the contribution of Beltrami that closed this journey, at least from a mathematical point of view. It is stressed that such evolution indicates the steady development of the mathematical methods from Euclidean metric to projective, and finally, with Beltrami, to the use of quadratic transformations. The role played by the nine-point conic problem in the studies of young Beltrami is emphasised. The author made use of the unedited correspondence Beltrami-Cremona, preserved in the Istituto Mazziniano, Genoa.