The golden ratio was first observed in nature and studied by geometricians in ancient Greece. From here, it spiralled into numerous loosely connected fields. In doing so, it became a template for Renaissance thought. “The Golden Ratio started to become available to artists in theoretical treatises that were not overly mathematical, that they could actually use,” as Luca Pacioli’s Divina proportione of 1509 put it.

As a child trying to get your head around this magic number, you were probably guided towards pictures of seashells, sunflowers and spiral galaxies. But your teachers could as easily have brought up the work of Le Corbusier or, if the fan theories hold up, played you In Rainbows by Radiohead.

Even in our metamodernist era, the concept permeates the spheres of art, architecture and music. And – OK, this might be a half-baked hypothesis on our part, but here goes – fashion. Now, we’re not saying that there’s a mathematically proven cheat code when it comes to dressing. But if your top half is more like 61.8 per cent, the sweet spot according to the Fibonacci sequence, then you must be doing something right. Right?

We wonder purely because there must be a reason why a combination of a long-sleeved top and shorts works so well. It can’t just be coincidence that a sweater teamed with 5in Baggies aligns with the golden rectangle. Could the proportions keeping the Parthenon in place also be behind the eternal appeal of Harrison Ford’s ensemble from the 1982 Cannes Film Festival? Or even the mainspring of our ongoing fascination with Harry Style’s gym wear? (Although those impressive gams, chiselled from running marathons – another Greek innovation – probably also contribute here.)

The phrase that gets banded around is “power pairing”. Certainly, there’s the sense that this combination is more than the sum of its perfectly balanced parts. It’s a twist on the menswear mainstay of a short-sleeved shirt or tee and full-length trousers, flipped and reversed – and that this arrangement is less commonly seen is perhaps what catches the eye. It’s unexpected, yet the two pieces sit in such harmony that even Euclid might consider trading in his chlamys.

In short, grab a sweatshirt and some shorts and give it a golden whirl.