Open Questions

Did Alexander Grothendieck really offer 57 as an example of a prime number?

Citation Formats

General Reference

Divinity Atlas. "Did Alexander Grothendieck really offer 57 as an example of a prime number?." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/did-alexander-grothendieck-really-offer-57-as-an-example-of-a-prime-number.

APA Style

Divinity Atlas. (n.d.). Did Alexander Grothendieck really offer 57 as an example of a prime number?. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/did-alexander-grothendieck-really-offer-57-as-an-example-of-a-prime-number

BibTeX

@misc{divinityatlas-did-alexander-grothendieck-really-offer,
  author = {Divinity Atlas},
  title = {Did Alexander Grothendieck really offer 57 as an example of a prime number?},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/did-alexander-grothendieck-really-offer-57-as-an-example-of-a-prime-number},
  note = {Accessed August 30, 2026}
}

Open Question

The anecdote is very widely told and 57 is called the Grothendieck prime because of it. Its literal veracity is disputed within mathematical folklore, and the tellings do not agree on the setting or the wording.

What would resolve this A first-hand account from someone present, or a contemporary written record of the exchange.

OpenHistory of mathematics, and oral history of the Grothendieck circle.Allyn Jackson, Comme Appele du Neant, As If Summoned from the Void: The Life of Alexandre Grothendieck

Cross-Tradition Connections