Timaeus of Locri

Timaeus of Locri, also called Timaeus of Locri Timaeus and Lokros (Greek Τίμαιος Λοκρός; Latinized Locrus Timaeus ), was supposed to be a philosopher of the Pythagorean school. As interlocutors of Socrates, he would have lived in the 5th century BC. Its existence, however, is uncertain since it appears only in Plato's dialogues two as a literary figure; all figures in later sources based on these dialogs or are invented. Timaeus is the main interlocutor of the dialogue Timaeus named after him and also occurs in the Critias.

Question the historical existence

In Plato 's Timaeus appears as a distinguished and wealthy citizen of the Greek colony of Locri Epizephyrioi (now Locri in Calabria ), who had practiced in his hometown high office, before he came to Athens, where in the Timaeus literary embodied conversation allegedly took place. That he was Pythagoreans, Plato does not say explicitly, but leaves it open easily from his utterances in the dialog. His expertise in all areas of philosophy, particularly in the field of natural philosophy, as well as in astronomy is highlighted.

In ancient times, Timaeus ' existence was not doubted. Cicero writes that Plato had traveled to Italy to find out there in the Timaeus and other Pythagoreans about Pythagorean wisdom teachings. The news that Plato 's Timaeus had met on his trip to Italy, led in Late Antiquity, the scholar Macrobius to the conclusion Timaeus could not have been a contemporary and interlocutor of Socrates, who was no longer alive at that time. The late ancient philosopher Iamblichus leads to Timaeus among the known Pythagoreans.

In modern archeology, the view prevails that Plato invented the figure of the Timaeus. It is believed that he gave it trains him known as the Pythagorean Archytas of Tarentum. The main argument for the hypothesis of a literary fiction is that all surviving information about the Timaeus of Plato's information can be derived. A counter- argument is that Plato can occur historical characters in his dialogues in general.

Spurious works

One wrote in the Doric dialect paper entitled " On the nature of the cosmos and the soul " (Greek Περὶ φύσιος κόσμω καὶ ψυχᾶς Peri physios Kosmo kai Psychas ) entirely preserved and handed down in more than fifty manuscripts, begins with the words " Timaeus the Locrian said the following ". It is referred to in the relevant manuscripts as the work of Timaeus. In the 2nd century AD, it is first mentioned in sources ( in Nicomachus of Gerasa and in the Timaeus commentary of Lucius Kalbenos Tauros ). Their authenticity was not questioned in antiquity. It contains a summary of the lessons that Timaeus of Locri in Plato's dialogue Timaeus argues, and agrees in structure largely consistent with Plato's work. Therefore, it was believed that it was a copy of the Timaeus, Plato served ( the speech of Timaeus ) as a template for the main part of his dialogue. This assumption was necessary because v. since the 3rd century BC was rumored, the Timaeus is plagiarism; it was alleged that Plato bought for much money a Pythagorean book, which he had taken from those set forth in the Timaeus natural philosophical teachings. This book has now been identified with " the nature of the cosmos and the soul."

Only modern philological studies have shown that originates " On the nature of the cosmos and the soul" from the late 1st century BC or 1st century AD and is based on Plato's Timaeus. It is one of the numerous philosophical treatises pseudepigraphical, attributing their anonymous authors their writings known Pythagoreans the past. A major difference to Plato's Timaeus is that pseudo - Timaeus reflects only the teaching content and waives the justifications and methodological considerations. On the other hand, he adds occasional own arguments and material from other Platonic dialogues. His attitude to the issues discussed is clearer than that of Plato's Timaeus, his approach scholastically. Individual points in pseudo - Timaeus are incomprehensible or misleading if you do not know the Timaeus dialogue. The style of the pseudo - Timaeus is sober compared with the enthusiastic expression in the Platonic dialogue.

" On the nature of the cosmos and the soul" shows traces of thought and terminology of Mittelplatonismus; particular points of contact with the writings of Philo of Alexandria and Eudorus of Alexandria are recognizable. Hence the hypothesis is plausible that the author lived in Alexandria and was familiar with the philosophy of Eudorus. He modernized the natural philosophy of Plato's Timaeus, he was aware of developments by Hellenistic astronomy and medicine.

Apparently material has been incorporated from an earlier, now lost Timaeus Commentary ( or more ). After a language accepted by some classical scholars hypothesis of Richard Harder the work is created in two stages: Pseudo - Timaeus, the author of the traditional version, revised an older, resulting in the Hellenistic period Timaeus processing.

In the Suda, a Byzantine encyclopedia of the 10th century, and in scholia to Plato's Timaeus Timaeus of Locri is attributed by a font Mathematika, about whom nothing is otherwise known. Probably it is a mix of the Timaeus of Locri with a same astrologers. Furthermore, the Timaeus is said to have written a biography of Pythagoras of Locri; This message is probably based on confusion with the historian Timaeus of Tauromenion that went down in his historical work on the activities of Pythagoras.

Reception

The paper "On the nature of the cosmos and the soul" was the late antique Neoplatonists Iamblichus, Syrianos, Proclus and Simplicius known. The work of the pseudo - Timaeus supported the spread in Neoplatonic circles believe that Pythagoreanism and Platonism form a unified doctrine. This corresponded to the intention of the anonymous author, who wanted to document the classification of Plato in the Pythagorean tradition.

In the 15th century, translated the humanist Giorgio Valla, " On the nature of the cosmos and of the soul" into Latin; 1498 his translation was printed in Venice. The Greek text was first published in 1513 as part of a complete edition of Plato with Aldo Manuzio in Venice. There followed a number of other prints; the work which was continued in the 16th century as a model of Plato's Timaeus ( as well as in the Stephanus edition of the works of Plato ), was often included in the Plato - prints.

Swell

• Maria Timpanaro Cardini: Pitagorici. Testimonianze e frammenti. Vol 2, La Nuova Italia, Florence 1962, pp. 402-405 ( Greek source texts with Italian translation and commentary )

Text editions and translations

• Walter Marg (ed.): Timaeus Locrus, De natura et animae mundi. Editio maior. Brill, Leiden 1972, ISBN 90-04-03505-2 ( authoritative critical edition with German translation, pp. 83-113 compilation of source certificates with comment )
• Thomas H. Tobin (ed.): Timaeus of Locri, On the Nature of the World and the Soul. Scholars Press, Chico (California), 1985, ISBN 0-89130-767-2 (Greek text with introduction, English translation and commentary )