The Golden Ratio: Phi, 1.618

Credit Cards and Golden Ratio Proportions

Credit cards are in the shape of a Golden Rectangle. If you ever need an easily accessible example of a golden rectangle illustrating the proportions of the golden section, all you need do is to pull out a credit card or drivers license.

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Standard sized credit cards are 54mm by 86mm, creating a ratio of 0.628, less than a millimeter off from a perfect golden ratio or golden section of 0.618, the reciprocal of 1.618.

Your credit history

Credit cards were created in 1951, with the first plastic version coming in 1959. The early credit cards didn’t have golden rectangle proportions. That came sometime later. The earliest ISO reference I can find is from 1980, but there likely was other use of the golden rectangle in credit cards before then.

https://time.com/4512375/first-credit-card/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/magazine/1994/11/04/the-day-the-credit-card-was-born/d42da27b-0437-4a67-b753-bf9b440ad6dc/

https://bankerandtradesman.com/this-month-in-history-the-first-credit-card/

https://www.iso.org/standard/7917.html

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