Platonic Academy facts for kids
The Academy (called Akadēmía in ancient Greek) was a famous school in Athens. It was started by the well-known Greek thinker Plato around 387 BC. Many important people studied there, including Aristotle, who later started his own school called the Lyceum.
The Academy continued for a long time, even changing its ideas to be more about skepticism (doubting what you know). It finally closed after the death of Philo of Larissa in 83 BC. The Roman leader Sulla destroyed the Platonic Academy in 86 BC.
Later, new schools that followed Plato's ideas appeared. One was in Athens, claiming to continue Plato's tradition. This school was closed by Emperor Justinian I in 529 AD. Some scholars then moved to Harran to continue their studies. Much later, in 1462, Cosimo de' Medici started the Platonic Academy of Florence, which helped kick off the Renaissance period. Today, the Academy of Athens was founded in 1926, also inspired by Plato's original school.
Contents
The Academy's Ancient History
The Akademia was a school located outside the city walls of ancient Athens. It was built in a special area with olive trees. This area was dedicated to the goddess Athena. It was named Academia after its first owner, Academus. He was a hero in Greek mythology.
Academus was famous for saving Athens from an attack by Sparta. He told them where Helen of Troy was hidden after she was kidnapped. Because he prevented a war, Academus was seen as a hero. His land, about one kilometer (half a mile) north of Athens, became very respected. Even during wars, other cities often left this land untouched.
The Academy's location was sacred to Athena. It had been a religious site since the Bronze Age. It was also linked to the hero-gods Castor and Polydeuces. The Spartans, who respected these gods, would not harm the groves when they attacked Attica. However, the Roman leader Lucius Cornelius Sulla did not share this respect. In 86 BC, he cut down the sacred olive trees to build siege engines during a war.
Plato's Famous School
What became Plato's school was part of the Academia area. Plato inherited the land when he was thirty. He started holding informal meetings there with friends and other thinkers. People like Theaetetus and Archytas joined these discussions.
Scholars believe the school officially started sometime after 387 BC. This was when Plato returned from a trip to Sicily. Meetings often took place on Plato's property or at the nearby Academy gymnasium.
The Academy was open to the public. However, most people who joined were upper-class men. Plato's school did not charge money to attend. It was not a "school" in the way we think of one today, with clear teachers and students. Instead, it was a place for shared learning. There were older, more experienced members and younger ones. Two women, Axiothea of Phlius and Lasthenia of Mantinea, are known to have studied with Plato there.
Historians often divide the Academy's history into different periods: the Old, Middle, and New Academy. Each period had different leaders and sometimes different ideas.
The Old Academy
Plato's first successors as head of the Academy were Speusippus, Xenocrates, Polemon, and Crates. Other famous people who were part of the Academy included Aristotle and Eudoxus.
During Plato's time, the school did not teach one specific set of beliefs. Instead, Plato and others would suggest problems for everyone to study and solve together. They often used a method called dialectic, which means discussing ideas through questions and answers.
There is a famous story, though it might not be true, that a sign above the Academy's entrance said: "Let no-one ignorant of geometry enter here." This suggests that mathematics was very important. Students likely studied math and philosophy. There was even some early scientific research. For example, Plato asked members to find simple ways to explain how planets move in the sky.
Many people think Plato's Academy was a training ground for future politicians. However, it is hard to know for sure how much the Academy focused on practical politics.
Later Academies
Around 266 BC, Arcesilaus became the head of the Academy. Under him, the school focused on Academic skepticism. This meant they believed it was impossible to know absolute truth. This skeptical approach continued with later leaders like Carneades.
The "New Academy" began with Carneades in 155 BC. It still largely doubted the possibility of knowing absolute truth. The last undisputed head of the Academy was Philo of Larissa. Around 90 BC, Philo's student Antiochus of Ascalon started teaching his own ideas. He rejected skepticism and began a new phase called Middle Platonism.
The Academy's Destruction
When a war called the First Mithridatic War started in 88 BC, Philo of Larissa left Athens and went to Rome. In 86 BC, the Roman general Lucius Cornelius Sulla attacked Athens. He caused a lot of damage. During this attack, Sulla destroyed the Academy. He cut down its sacred groves of trees.
The destruction was so bad that the Academy could not be rebuilt or reopened. When Antiochus returned to Athens around 84 BC, he taught in a different place. The site of the Academy became quiet and empty.
The Neoplatonic Academy
Even though Plato's original Academy was destroyed, philosophers continued to teach Plato's ideas in Athens. Then, in the early 400s AD, a new academy was started by some leading thinkers called Neoplatonists. This new school had no real connection to Plato's original Academy.
The Neoplatonists in Athens called themselves "successors" of Plato. They wanted to show they were continuing his tradition. This school was likely a private one, held in a large house. Famous leaders of this Neoplatonic Academy included Proclus and Damascius.
By the 6th century, Christianity had become the main religion in the Roman Empire. The Neoplatonists in Athens did not accept Christianity. Their school was a center of different ideas. In 529 AD, the Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I banned their teaching.
The last head of the Neoplatonic Academy was Damascius. Some members of the school looked for safety with the Persian king Khosrau I. They took their valuable books and ideas with them. Some historians think the Neoplatonic Academy might have continued in other places, helping to spread these ancient ideas to the Arab world.
The Academy in Modern Times
The ancient site of the Academy was found again in the 20th century. It is now in the modern neighborhood of Akadimia Platonos. A lot of digging has been done there, and you can visit the site for free. It is about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) north of Athens' Dipylon gates.
Today, visitors can explore the archaeological site. You can see important old buildings. These include a Sacred House from the Geometric Era, a Gymnasium from the Roman period, and a Peristyle Building from the fourth century BC. This Peristyle Building might be the only major building that belonged to Plato's actual Academy.
See also
