Fragments of Numenius of Apamea

by Robert Petty

Numenius of Apamea was, according to John Dillon, the “most fascinating figure in second-century philosophy” and an important forerunner of what is commonly known as neoplatonism - so much so that at one point Plotinus was accused of merely appropriating Numenius’ ideas. Unfortunately none of his works survive intact, so his full influence upon the development of Platonism must remain largely a matter of conjecture. Here, for the first time in English are the extant fragements of Numenius presented with a detailed commentary. The text followed here is that established by Des Places in his Budé edition. The translation includes all fragments, but the commentary deals only with those fragments which are directly related to Numenius’ own philosophy

Genres: Philosophy

288 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2012

Reviews

[Cw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty interesting piece of the history of Platonism. Plotinus is accused of copying this guy, but based on the fragments in this book, it seems to me that Plotinus teaches this philosophy in a better way. There's also a funny section where Numenius throws shade at some of the middle platonists.