What does the golden ratio mean? (Author: Krisztina Adamy) The golden ratio was already known in ancient Greece and can be observed in architectural features such as the Parthenon temple on the Acropolis in Athens. Mathematically, the division ratio of a distance is known as the golden ratio, in which the ratio of the whole to its larger part is equal to the ratio of the larger to the smaller part. The "divine proportion" can also be found in nature: the spiral shell of a snail shell or the arrangement of the leaves of a flower are based on the golden ratio. The effect of "perfect" proportion is also consciously used in art time and again. For example, it can also be found in what is probably the most famous painting in the world - the Mona Lisa. But how is the golden ratio used in modern architecture? The effect of the proportions of a building façade, for example, on the observer is different: if the proportions of the elements to each other correspond to the golden ratio, it appears calm, beautiful and aesthetic to the observer. If a restless, deliberately exciting effect is desired, balanced proportions must be created. Symmetrical, centred arrangements can appear "too calm" or in some cases even "boring". The combination of all these effects then creates an interesting picture.