Epicycle Scribe Unisex Sweatshirt: Star

Circles riding on circles, drawing a shape.

Fix a small circle to the rim of a larger one and turn both, following a point on the smallest. Ancient astronomers used these epicycles to predict the wandering of the planets in the night sky. Centuries later, Joseph Fourier showed why they work so well: almost any repeating shape can be built by adding together circular motions of different sizes and speeds.

Star. The five-pointed star, approximately. To get the lines and points exact you'd need an infinite number of circles. This one has twenty-one, so the points are softly rounded and the lines wobble a little.

Who it’s for

The circles that once tracked the planets are now Fourier analysis, the idea behind audio equalizers, MRI scanners and the compression in MP3s and JPEGs. Made for electrical and audio engineers, physicists, astronomers and anyone who loves finding hidden patterns.

For late nights in the lab, cold observatory domes and long afternoons of reading, in a relaxed unisex cut.

The Unisex Sweatshirt

• 280 g loopback knit, 95% polyester and 5% spandex. Warm, with a little stretch.
• Crew neck, relaxed unisex fit: size down for a closer fit.
• Wash by hand or machine below 45 °C. Do not soak or bleach.
• Not quite the right fit? Tell us within 30 days and we’ll make it right.

Size guide

Measured laid flat, in cm (inches); chest is armpit to armpit. Allow 1–3 cm either way.

Every Zenzicube design is grown from a real piece of mathematics. Find more in the Mathematical Menagerie.