Haberstroh 1

John Haberstroh
HIST 222
Winter 2016
Dr. Salzman

The Closure of the Academy in Athens in Late Antiquity: Interpretations and Questions

In Late Antiquity, urban life is a major focus in literary sources.1 Often times, literary

source are a valuable source of information on ancient cities, however, for the Platonic Academy

in Athens, scant literary sources limit our understanding of how and when the Academy was

closed (if at all). Archaeological evidence from Athens has attempted to fill the gap, but a

definitive solution is wanting. For many, Platos Academy in Athens represents the hallmark of

Classical Athens. How, when, and why it closed has been much discussed in modern scholarship.

This paper examines the various arguments presented by modern scholars on the closure of the

Academy in Athens. It concludes with a tentative explanation given the arguments of these

previous studies.

The Academy in Athens was founded by the famous Athenian philosopher Plato, a

student of Socrates. This site where the school got its name comes from one of two legendary

Athenians, Academos or Echedemia, according to Plutarch the biographer.2 The original

Academy was located just outside the city, and it is said to have been near a sacred olive grove. 3

Plutarch recorded that the Athenian fifth-century BC general Cimon was the first to renovate it

from a waterless and arid spot into a well-watered grove, which he provided with clear running-

1
All dates are AD unless otherwise noted.
2
Plut. Thes. 32.3-4, in Lives, vol. I, trans. Bernadotte Perrin (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1914).
Also, Diog. Laert. 3.7, in Live of Eminent Philosophers, vol. I, trans. R. D. Hicks (Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 1925). Edward Watts, Creating the Academy: Historical Discourse and the Shape of
Community in the Old Academy, The Journal of Hellenic Studies 127 (2007), 108.
3
Ar. Clouds, 1002-1008, ed. and trans. Jeffrey Henderson (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1998). The
second-century traveler/geographer Pausanias (Description of Greece, trans. W. H. S. Jones (Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press, 1918)) even claims that one of these olive trees was the second to ever to exist (1.30.2:
, ).
 Haberstroh 2

tracks and shady walks.4 By the late-second century, the Academy was no longer private

property but a public gymnasium, according to the traveler/geographer Pausanias.5 During its

prime in the fourth and third centuries BC, the Academy was where Plato and his successors

taught philosophy.6 In fact, Plato was buried in the garden at the Academy.7 Leadership of the

Academy subsequently passed to Platos nephew Speusippus, but fragmentation and factionalism

within the school ensued over the next few decades.8 The Academy lived on until the Roman

dictator Sulla destroyed the Academy in 86 BC.9 Plutarch, son of Nestorius, refounded the

Academy in the late fourth century.10 After a few decades of relative success, the emperor

Justinian (r. 527-565) allegedly closed the Academy in Athens in 529. In the words of Alan

Cameron: Scholars have credulously regarded the laws of 529 as the final victory of

Christianity. Romantics have lamented the final suppression of the Greek spirit.11

How do we know that the Academy closed at this time, and what have scholars thought

about this episode in Late Antiquity? Several scholars have provided analyses of the closure of

the Academy. When addressing this case, scholars have focused on two main factors: 1)

circumstantial textual evidence regarding Justinians anti-pagan legislation, and 2) an anecdote

4
Plut. Cim. 13.8, in Lives, vol. II, trans. Bernadotte Perrin (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1914).
5
Paus. 1.29.2.
6
Watts (2007), 108-109 with footnotes 12 and 13, notes disagreement over whether or not Plato taught in a private
house or in the public park area. Watts prefers the latter following the extent descriptions of Platos teaching
practices.
7
Diog. Laert. 3.41. Watts (2007), 111.
8
Diog. Laert. 4.1. For an account of Platos successors, see Watts (2007), 106-122.
9
Appian, The Mithridatic Wars, 12.5.30, in Roman History, vol. II, translated by Brian McGing (Cambridge,
MA: Harvard University Press, 1912); Plut. Sull. 12.3, in Lives, vol. IV, trans. Bernadotte Perrin (Cambridge,
MA: Harvard University Press, 1916): And when timber began to fail, owing to the destruction of many of the
works, which broke down of their own weight, and to the burning of those which were continually smitten by the
enemys fire-bolts, he laid hands upon the sacred groves, and ravaged the Academy, which was the most wooded
of the citys suburbs, as well as the Lyceum.
10
H. J. Blumenthal, 529 and Its Sequel: What happened to the Academy, Byzantion 48 (1978), 373; J. A. S.
Evans, The Age of Justinian: The Circumstances of Imperial Power (New York: Routledge, 1996), 27; Edward
Watts, Justinian, Malalas, and the End of Athenian Philosophical Teaching in A.D. 529, The Journal of Roman
Studies 94 (2004), 169.
11
Alan Cameron, The Last Days of the Academy at Athens, Proceedings of the Cambridge Philological Society
195 (1969), 9.
 Haberstroh 3

about an ensuing exodus of seven philosophers to the court of Chosroes I, king of Sassanid

Persia. Within these two topics, there are several contributing matters such as the status of

education in the Empire during this period, (potential) archaeological remains in Athens of the

Neoplatonist school, the lives of late-Neoplatonist philosophers in and outside of Athens, and

others. While these are areas where finer points are disputed, scholars generally agree that the

Academy was closed at some point in Late Antiquity.

The focal points of textual material on the closure of the Academy are edicts of the

emperor Justinian recorded in his Codex Justinianus (1.5.18, 1.11.9, and 1.11.10) and an entry in

John Malalas Chronicle for the year 529 (18.47).12 The anti-pagan legislation in the CJ includes

the following highlights: 1.5.18.4: only orthodox Christians can be salaried teachers, 13 1.11.9:

pagan superstitions should be investigated and perpetrators punished, and 1.11.10: pagans must

convert or face exile and have their property confiscated, pagans are no longer allowed to be

teachers (and will not receive a salary), and pagans found making sacrifices will be put to death.

The exact dates for these pieces of legislation are uncertain and open to debate. Although most

scholars date CJ 1.11.10 to 529, Edward Watts argues that the CJ 1.11.9 and 1.11.10 could

possibly be dated to 531 when the exodus of the philosophers from Athens to Persia.14 He arrives

at this explanation by separating John Malalas passage from that of Justinians edict. Since the

extant version of CJ 1.11.10 is in its second version and is dated to 534, H. J. Blumenthal states

that it uncertain whether any of its provisions stood in earlier 529 version, either at all or, more

12
Justinian, Annotated Justinian Code, trans. Fred H. Blume. George William Hopper Law Library, College of Law,
University of Wyoming, unpublished, http://www.uwyo.edu/lawlib/blume-justinian/. John Malalas, The Chronicle
of John Malalas: A Translation, trans. Elizabeth Jeffreys, Michael Jeffreys, and Roger Scott (Melbourne:
Australian Association for Byzantine Studies, 1986), 264.
13
Blumenthal, 382-383, notes that this did not prevent pagans from being teachersthey simply could not receive
public funds to do so. Cf. Cameron, 8.
14
Watts (2004), 179.
 Haberstroh 4

importantly, in the precise terms in which we now have them.15 Gonzalo Fernndez insists that

CJ 1.11.9 and 1.11.10 and the trip to Persia are not the result of a cause-effect relationship.16

Either way, the edict and John Malalas entry must precede the exodus to Persia in 531.

John Malalas Chronicle was written sometime in the sixth century, and it has been

preserved as an extremely abbreviated epitome.17 In his comparison between Malalas work

and Procopius Secret History, Roger Scott argues that Malalas Book 18 is largely based on

imperial propaganda, thus it is a reliable source for Justinians legislation.18 Blumenthal,

however, believes that Malalas was not a historian of the first rank, and that he may have

made illegitimate references from the regulations, and so misinterpreted what actually

happened.19 Nevertheless, here is the relevant text in full (18.47):20

During the consulship of Decius, the emperor issued a decree and sent it to Athens
ordering that no one should teach philosophy nor interpret astronomy nor in any city
should there be lots cast using dice; for some who cast dice had been discovered in
Byzantium indulging themselves in dreadful blasphemies. Their hands were cut off and
they were paraded around on camels.

,
,

.

Edward Watts brings up an important issue regarding a variant text. In Dindorfs 1831 edition

(Watts calls it far from a critical edition), which was based on a single seventh-century

manuscript, reads instead of . The latter was a variant found in a Vatican

15
Blumenthal, 384. Watts (2004), 179, acknowledges the window of possibility between 529 and 534.
16
Gonzalo Fernndez, Justiniano y la clausura de la escuela de Atenas, Erytheia 2, no. 2 (1983), 25. Also Edward
Watts, City and School in Late Antique Athens and Alexandria (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of
California Press, 2006), 141.
17
Watts (2004), 172; Watts (2006), 132.
18
Roger D. Scott, Malalas, the Secret History, and Justinians Propaganda, Dumbarton Oaks Papers 39 (1985),
99-109, followed by Watts (2004), 172-173; Watts (2006), 133. Scott (106) adds that Malalas work possesses:
numerous public notices about his measures and achievementsas a strange hotchpotch of undigested material.
19
Blumenthal, 382.
20
Translated with emendation provided by in Watts (2004), 171.
 Haberstroh 5

manuscript and is followed by the most current edition of the text.21 This results in a difference

between a prohibition on practicing astrology and teaching law. The former is preferred because

of its associations with divining the future of the emperor, hence his disapproval. 22 Hllstrm

noted before Watts that was more understandable than , although

Hllstrm proceeds to defend the latter.23 Hllstrm (perhaps unknowingly) references a passage

in Procopius (Secret History, 11.37) which mentions that astrologers were punished by being

paraded around on camels, thus lending more support for the reading of .24 Watts

and Hllstrm further disagree on the coordinating conjunctions . Hllstrm

thinks that the passage has two distinct prescriptions, namely that philosophy and law/astronomy

should not be taught in Athens and dice should not be cast in any city, whereas Watts believes

that the passage explicitly connects the prohibition on astronomy to that of gambling.25

Blumenthal dryly refers to the evidence is the CJ and Malalas as certainly not very

good.26 Humoring Blumenthal for the time being, if this is the case, then what other evidence

have scholars used in answering the question of the closure of the Academy?

Another major source of information for this question is archaeological evidence from

Athens itself. In 1955, a large building complex was excavated on the south side of the Acropolis

21
Johannes Thurn, Ioannis Malalae Chronographia (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2000). For a discussion on the
manuscript variant, see Watts (2004), 171-172 with footnotes 27 and 28.
22
Watts (2004), 173, 177-178; Watts (2006), 134-136.
23
Gunnar af Hllstrm, The Closing of the Neoplatonic School in A.D. 529: An Additional Aspect, in Post-
Herulian Athens: Aspects of Life and Culture in Athens A.D. 267-529, ed. Paavo Castrn (Helsinki, 1994), 146.
Hllstrm (147) defends because he believes Justinian honored Athens by sending them a copy of his
monobiblion. This also fits his larger argument that Justinian closed the Academy for academic (not
religious) reasons because he wanted to bolster the importance of the law school in Constantinople (157-160).
24
Hllstrm, 147. Watts (2004), 174.
25
Hllstrm, 144-145; Watts (2004), 172; Watts (2006), 132-134. Watts (2006), 135-136, discusses the role of local
officials in the interpretation and implementation of the law. A local governor could have amended the law to
specifically mention Athens. If Malalas source is this local variant, this could explain why Athens is mentioned
in this passage.
26
Blumenthal, 382. Cameron, 8-9, thinks it is usually easier to disbelieve Malalas than believe him.
 Haberstroh 6

(dubbed Building Chi).27 Using a passage from Marinus Life of Proclus, this building is thought

to be the house of Proclus, and of Plutarch son of Nestorius before him.28 It was a common

feature of Late Antique schools for lessons to be taught in private residences.29 Remains found in

this building include various ruined pagan sculptures, some of which were discarded in a nearby

well, and mosaic of a cross which covered over an earlier pagan image.30 These finds and the

dating of these material shows that this building was abandoned sometime in the 530s, thus for

Watts, this shows the Christian reaction against pagans in accordance with Justinians anti-pagan

laws.31 Not all scholars believe that this building was used as a school house for philosophers.

Jean-Pierre Sodini believes that this building and other similar buildings on the north side of the

Areopagus were homes of elite families.32 Most recently, Watts has refined this idea by arguing

that Building Chi matches Marinus description and that the buildings near the Areopagus were

elite homes.33 The archaeological interpretation of this building cannot be argued conclusively

given the state of the evidence and lack of provenance for the pagan statues. 34 Alan Cameron

believes something rather different: Any such school buildings as did fall into disrepair in the

late sixth century did so, not as a result of any law of Justinian in 529, but simply as part of a

27
Blumenthal, 375-376; Arja Karivieri, The House of Proclus on the Southern Slope of the Acropolis: A
Contribution, in Post-Herulian Athens: Aspects of Life and Culture in Athens A.D. 267-529, ed. Paavo Castrn
(Helsinki, 1994), 115-116.
28
Marinus, Life of Proclus, 29, translated by Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie (Yonkers, NY: Platonist Press, 1925): This
indeed was one of Procluss good fortunes, that he lived in the house that suited him best, where had dwelt both
Syrianus, whom he called his father, and Plutarch, whom he called his grandfather. It was in the vicinity of the
Asklepius temple which Sophocles had immortalized, and of the Dionysus temple near the theater, and was in
sight of the Acropolis. See Karivieri, 117 footnote 12 for a bibliography.
29
Edward Watts, Doctrine, Anecdote, and Action: Reconsidering the Social History of the Last Platonists (c. 430
c. 550 C.E.), Classical Philology 106, no. 3 (July 2011), 228, 231.
30
See Karivieri, 115-139 for a survey of Building Chi. Watts (2006), 140-141.
31
Watts (2004), 181-182. Also, Allison Frantz, From Paganism to Christianity in the Temples of Athens,
Dumbarton Oaks Papers 19 (1965), 197, and Allison Frantz, Pagan Philosophers in Christian Athens,
Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 119 (1975), 31-32.
32
Jean-Pierre Sodini, Lhabitat urbain en Grce la veille des invasions, in Villes et peuplement dans lIllyricum
protobyzantin. Actes du Colloque organis par lcole franaise de Rome 78 (Rome, 12-14 mai 1982) (Paris,
1984), 350, cited in Karivieri, 117-118.
33
Watts (2011), 228-230.
34
Blumenthal, 378. Karivieri, 131.
 Haberstroh 7

general decline of Athenian prosperity at this period.35 At the very least, it is generally assumed

that this building complex was abandoned or fell into disrepair in the 530s.

What happened to the Neoplatonist philosophers who lived and worked in Athens? A

fascinating anecdote is found in the Histories of the sixth century historian, Agathias of Myrina.

Agathias mentions a journey of seven philosophers to the court of Chosroes I of Persia, who was

then at war with the Roman Empire.36 The seven philosophers were Damascius of Syria,

Simplicius of Cilicia, Eulamius of Phrygia, Priscianus of Lydia, Hermias and Diogenes of

Phoenicia, and Isidore of Gaza. This is quite a diverse group of teachers, and not one was born in

Athens. Such diversity is possible given the itinerant nature of philosophers seeking different

posts across the Empire.37 Hllstrm sees the fact that Agathias provides the names and places of

origin for the seven lends to the texts historical veracity. 38 Four of the teachers are unknown in

the historical record (Eulamius, Hermias, Diogenes, and Isidore), but the other three are well-

known figures in this time period.39 A later document called the Parastaseis Syntomoi Chronikai

from the eighth or ninth century records a strikingly similar story where seven Athenian

philosophers travel to Persia only to return to Constantinople disappointed.40 The number of

philosophers in both stories is reminiscent of the famous Seven Sages of Greece mentioned in

Platos Protagoras.41 Several factors prevent the acceptance of the story: 1) other sources lend to

the possibility that this story is operating within a literary trope, 2) Agathias is the only source

35
Cameron, 8.
36
Agathias, Histories, ed. B. G. Niebuhr (Bonn: Weber, 1828), 2.30.3-4.
37
Hllstrm, 150-151, stresses the international character of the group. Watts (2011), 240: Agathias description
instead suggests that these seven were only among the brightest members of a still-vibrant philosophical
landscape. Christian Wildberg, Philosophy in the Age of Justinian, in The Cambridge Companion to the Age of
Justinian, ed. Michael Maas (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005), 320.
38
Hllstrm, 149.
39
Hllstrm, 149.
40
Parastaseis Syntomoi Chronikai 64, edited and translated by Averil Cameron and Judith Herrin (Leiden, 1984),
cited in Hllstrm, 149.
41
Plato, Protagoras, 343a, in Plato in Twelve Volumes, vol. 3, translated by W. R. M. Lamb (Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press, 1967). Hllstrm, 149.
 Haberstroh 8

for the journey, and 3) Agathias is silent on the supposed closure of the Academy (which is why

they left Athens in the first place). That said, in the end most cite and accept Agathias account.42

It is agreed that the seven philosophers could not have traveled to Persia before 531 since

that was the year Chosroes I assumed the throne. Alan Cameron points out that Chosroes did not

begin his reign until September 13, 531, thus the seven could not have heard about his reputation

as a philosopher and traveled to him until 532.43 Watts acknowledges Camerons dating, but still

believes that they seven left for Persia in late 531.44 Indeed, Chosroes I was known as a

philosopher-king, however, scholars disagree on the reason why the philosophers sought out a

foreign court.45 There are generally two camps on this issue. One believes that the seven went to

Persia willingly in search of some philosophical retreat in the home of a philosopher-king.46 The

second believes that the seven were pushed out because of the anti-pagan hostilities and

Justinians legislation.47 Whether the philosophers went to Persia willingly or not is important in

determining the effect(s) of any Justinianic legislation. In 532, the Emperor Justinian and King

Chosroes I signed a peace agreement (known as the Eternal Peace, though it only lasted eight

years) which also arranged for the safe travel of the seven philosophers back to their respective

homes to live under an indemnity. 48 Cameron challenges this extra information in Agathias. He

rightly questions, But without pushing skepticism too far, one may be permitted to wonder

42
Fernndez, 28, says the philosophers stay in Persia was anecdotal.
43
Cameron, 13. Blumenthal, 377. Hllstrm, 150 acknowledges that some time would have to elapse before they
knew of Chosroes reign. Wildberg, 320.
44
Watts (2004), 180; Watts (2006), 139.
45
Touraj Daryaee, Sasanid Perisa: The Rise and Fall of an Empire (London: I. B. Tauris, 2009), 29: Khusro I
(531579 CE) represents the epitome of the philosopher-king in Sasanian and Near Eastern history. Hllstrm,
148-151.
46
Cameron, 7 and 17, asserts that Simplicius and the others had intended to leave for another state, but decided to
lay low until the heard of Chosroes ascension, at which time they decided to go freely. Fernndez, 27, follows a
similar line of thinking. Hllstrm, 150, stresses the general nature of anti-pagan legislation, and since Agathias
mentions no specific edict, the philosophers left on their own free will.
47
Blumenthal, 384 footnote 89: Unless we are to think that all seven philosophers went off in search of a pipe-
dream. Watts (2004), 181-182; Watts (2011), 237.
48
Agathias, 2.31. Procopius, History of the Wars, 1.22.17, translated by H. B. Dewing (Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 1971). Blumenthal, 381.
 Haberstroh 9

whether Justinian really did write his safe-conduct for the philosophers into a peace treaty with

Persia. And was Chosroes really so devoted to them as to insist on such a guarantee? 49 He also

adds that Procopius mentions no such arrangement.

This is the primary body of evidence for the closure of the Academy. A table detailing

the contested dates for the various textual source and events surrounding this debate can be

found in the Appendix (page 15). The remainder of the paper is devoted to examining the

possibilities that the Academy in Athens survived the anti-pagan legislation of Justinian. Several

scholars subscribe to this possibility. The first post-Persian exodus explanation for the survival of

the school is the afterlife of some of the Neoplatonic philosophers. In Agathias problematic

story, he mentions that the philosophers simply went home (2.31.2: ). Where that exactly

was is debated among scholars.50 Simplicus of Cilicia is known to have published three

commentaries on Aristotles works, which Cameron dates post-332.51 He argues that he had to

have returned to Athens because he needed access to the Academys library materials.

Blumenthal, on the other hand, argues that he returned Alexandria where he initially learned

philosophy.52 Beginning with Tardieu in 1986, scholars now think that Simplicius settled at his

home in Carrhae in Cilicia where he founded his own Neoplatonic school, which survived into

the tenth century.53 If Camerons assessment is correct, then this confirms that pagan teachers

49
Cameron, 18. Wildberg, 333, thinks that the philosophers lobbied themselves into the treaty.
50
Averil Cameron, Agathias (Oxford, 1970), 101, cited in Blumenthal, 377, questions whether or not the
philosophers went back to Athens since none of them originated there. For Wildberg, 330: After a brief and
disillusioning sojourn they left again, intending to return to the Roman Empire. At that point, their activities are
lost to history and open to much speculation. The Alexandria thesis is no longer accepted.
51
Cameron, 23-24; Fernndez, 28.
52
Blumenthal, 378-380. Hllstrm, 160, takes a middle ground approach: Simpliciuswas equally home in both
cities. Cameron, 22, argues that Damascius retired in nearby Emessa (Syria), his hometown, by 338.
53
M. Tardieu, Sabiens coraniques et Sabiens de Harran, Journal Asiatique 274 (1986), 1-44, cited in Evans, 70
note 268 and Pierre Chuvin, A Chronicle of the Last Pagans, trans. B. A. Archer (Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 1990), 139, and closely followed by Rainer Thiel, Simplikios und das Ende der platonischen
Schule in Athen (Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1999), 41-42, 49-55 (see Gerald Bechtles review of Thiel in
BMCR 2000.4.19). Also, Hllstrm, 149 footnote 50.
 Haberstroh 10

could live and publish in Athens despite the Academys closure, but the overall point is that

pagan philosophy continued after 532.

That pagan philosophy continued in the fifth century is common knowledge due to

Alexandrias flourishing schools during that time.54 From the late fifth century, the schools in

Alexandria and Gaza were beginning to surpass Athens in reputation; however, Aeneas of Gaza

wrote around the turn of the sixth century, perhaps hyperbolically, that the schools in Alexandria

were empty and its teachers unqualified.55 Athens was poised to make a comeback when

Justinians legislation went into effect, according to Cameron.56 Watts believes that Alexandria

had both moderated its presentation of pagan religious subjects in the late A.D. 480s and

weathered Justinians edict mentioned in John Malalas.57

Another interesting piece of evidence corroborating the life of the Academy after

Justinians legislation comes from another Neoplatonic philosopher, Olympiodorus. He was a

student of Ammonius Hermieou, who was taught by Proclus in Athens. 58 He mentions the effect

of the confiscations in his commentary of Platos Alcibiades: Perhaps Plato made a practice of

taking no fees because he was well-off. That is why the diadochika (endowments) have lasted till

now, in spite of many confiscations.59 These confiscations are surely the ones mentioned in CJ

1.5.18, 1.11.9, and 1.11.10, and they would have affected all pagans, but in particular it would

have affected the endowment of the Academy. Normally, educators in this period received a

publically-funded salary; however, CJ 1.5.18 made that inaccessible to pagan philosophers at the

54
Evans, 68.
55
Aeneas of Gaza, Theophrastus (PG 85, col. 877), cited in Hllstrm, 154.
56
Cameron, 27-29; Watts (2004), 170.
57
Watts (2004), 178-179; also, Watts (2006) emphasizes the failure of the philosophers at the school in Athens to
adapt to the changing political circumstances within its province and in the empire, whereas the Alexandrian
school persevered because of its ability to do what Athens philosophers refused.
58
Watts (2004), 178 footnote 77.
59
Olympiodorus, Alcibiades, 141.1-3, quoted in Blumenthal, 369. Blumenthal (369-370, with citations) states that
the exact meaning of diadochika is unknown. Cameron, 11-12, believes it refers to the pay of the head scholarch.
 Haberstroh 11

Academy and elsewhere. Instead, the philosophers at the Academy relied on a private

endowment from the time when Plutarch son of Nestorius refounded the school.60 The date of

Olympiodorus commentary is unknown but it is likely from the 360s.61 Some scholars do not

recognize Olympiodorus reference as reliable, and some even ignore it altogether. 62 Evans

rightly points out that: How vigorously this last interdict [confiscation] was enforced is

uncertain.63 Olympiodorus Athenian connections are apparent, and his comments on Athens

should be given some weight. The uneven enforcement of the edicts, if any enforcement was

carried out at all, allows for the possibility that some sort of pagan teaching might have

continued past 532.64

Twenty years or so after Olympiodorus evaluation of the status of the Academys funds,

Slavic invaders sacked Athens. This event is dated to either 578 or 579.65 For Cameron and

Fernndez, the Slavic sack spelled the true end of Academy.66 Blumenthal states at the beginning

of his article, which is in many ways a reply to Camerons, that he intends to question the view

that philosophy continued to be taught, or even studied, at Athens from 532 until the Slaves

sacked the city nearly fifty years later.67 No doubt the Slavic sack left the city in ruins, or as

60
Cameron, 21; Chuvin, 135; Wildberg, 331.
61
Blumenthal, 370-372, raises issues with Camerons dating and reliability of Olympiodorus statement. Cameron,
9, and Fernndez, 29 date the text to c. 360. Watts (2004), 182 footnote 105, states without endorsement: Writing
in the A.D. 560s, Olympiodorus (In Alc. 140-41) seems to indicate that the schools property was touched by
Justinianic confiscations.
62
Not reliable: Blumenthal, 370-372; Thiel, 32-34. Ignore: Chuvin, 137: The Academys endowment was
confiscated by the emperor toward the end of 531 or the beginning of 532; Evans, 68; Wildberg, 333.
63
Evans, 68; Watts (2004), 178-179. Watts (2006), 140 thinks that Damascius and his colleagues must have known
that both the Athenian Christian community and the provincial notables had sufficient influence to convince to
governor of Achaea to enforce these laws.
64
Watts (2006), 137 states: Contrary to the modern idea, Justinian and his deputies did not close the schools of
Athens. They did not really act against a school at all. Instead the legislation was designed to eliminate one type
of teachingNeoplatonic philosophy as it was presented at Athens.
65
On the dating of the Slavic invasion, which took place over the course of months, see D. M. Metcalf, The
Slavonic Threat to Greece Circa 580: Some Evidence from Athens, Hesperia: The Journal of the American
School of Classical Studies at Athens 31, no. 2 (Apr. - Jun., 1962), 134-157, esp. 134-135.
66
Cameron, 25. For Fernndez, 26, the sack of 580 is the terminus ante quem for the closure of the school.
67
Blumenthal, 369.
 Haberstroh 12

Frantz says in a romanticized tone, Toward the end of the sixth century a band of Slavs attacked

Athens and left a large part of the city buried under a thick layer of ashes, so bringing to an end

the decaying but still civilized period of late antiquity. 68 Such a statement reflects a change from

her earlier assessment that the sack of the Heruli in 267 had brought about the end of Athens

prosperity.69 It took about one hundred years after the Herulian sack for the Academy to find its

bearings under Plutarch son of Nestorius. If philosophy could recover after 267, then it could

possibly do so again after Justinians legislation.

There are several attestations of philosophical life in Athens after the Slavic sack, and

several scholars have seen these examples as evidence for the continuity and revival of the

Academy. Theodore of Tarsus, who eventually became the archbishop of Canterbury in the

seventh century, allegedly studied philosophy in Athens. 70 Pope Zacharias claims that Theodore

was educated specifically in philosophy at Athens. 71 Bede also refers to the education of

Theodore, but with less specificity. 72 The seventh century St. Gislenus apparently studied

and once wrote exsul et peregrinus sum et in hac partes

de terra longinqua veni, h.e. de Athenis, nobilissima Graecorum urbe, which Frantz believes

refers to Athens.73 These are two examples, nevertheless they suggest that some sort of

philosophical education took place in Athens after the sixth century. It is unclear what kind of

philosophy these men learned, and furthermore, it is not clear who the teachers were.

68
Frantz (1975), 37.
69
Frantz (1965), 188-189.
70
Cameron, 25; Fernndez, 29.
71
Pope Zacharias, PL 89, 943c, cited in Frantz (1965), 199 footnote 78: et novissime tuis temporibus Theodorus
ex Graeco Latinus ante philosophus et Athenis eruditus.
72
Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People, 4.1, trans. L. C. Jane (London: J. M. Dent; New York: E. P.
Dutton, 1910): There was at that time in Rome, a monk, called Theodore, well known to Hadrian, born at Tarsus
in Cilicia, a man well instructed in worldly and Divine literature, as also in Greek and Latin. Frantz (1965), 199
footnote 78, acknowledges the limitations of this source as evidence of the claim about Theodore.
73
Greek: Gesta Episcoporum Camaracensium I, 409, quoted by F. Gronovius, Geschichte der Stadt Athen im
Mittelalter (Stuttgart, 1889), I, 99. Latin: Acta Sanctorum, October, vol. 4, 1030). Both are quoted in Frantz
(1965), 199 footnote 78.
 Haberstroh 13

To conclude, a synthesis of the preceding evidence and argumentation is necessary. The

dating for the various textual sources is vital. The date for Malalas 18.47 of 529 is solid. The

most vital part of the equation is the gap between the edicts in CJ 1.11.9 and 1.11.10 and the

philosophers exodus to Persia. The philosophers journey to the court of Chosroes I (if it ever

happened at all) had to have taken place in early 532. If one dates the CJ legislation to 529, then

why did the philosophers wait nearly two years to leave? 74 In that case, the enforcement of the

laws was slack, and thus Justinians anti-pagan program did not have much bite. If the CJ

passages are dated to 531, they can be interpreted as the impetus for leaving the Empire for

Persia, thus Justinians laws worked. If the laws are dated post-531, then there is no clear relation

between the laws and the Persian sojourn. This still leaves the question of the Academys

closure. Leaving aside the question of the exodus, Malalas passage becomes central. If this law

did end philosophical teaching, and if it was directly targeted at Athens, and if the reading of

is correct, then it would be clear that the teachers at the Academy would have to

cease their activity as a result of Justinians anti-pagan platform and not a centralization of

institutions of higher learning.75 When combined with the archaeological evidence from the

House of Proclusif interpreted correctly as a school building abandoned sometime in the

530sa date for the closure of the Academy between 529 and 531 is most plausible. Watts

assessment of the issues is most probablephilosophy was banned in Athens in 529 (following

Malalas), then Justinian issued his law code in 531 demanding that pagans convert or be exiled,

which subsequently led to the philosophers trip to Persia.76

74
A few scholars think that they all went into hiding. But is this a realistic possibility for men out of work?
Cameron, 13-19; Fernndez, 27.
75
The latter is argued by Hllstrm (157-160) who asserts that Justinian eliminated the philosophy and law schools
in Athens in order to attract more students to the schools in Constantinople.
76
Watts (2004); Watts (2006).
 Haberstroh 14

Amid all of the interpretations and evidence surrounding the closure of the Academy in

Athens during the sixth century, no explanation can completely surpass the others because each

is built upon a tower of assumptions that can be toppled by other evidence and argumentation.

Most of the textual evidence is circumstantial, and the archaeological evidence is suggestive but

inconclusive. Later testimonies of philosophical teaching in Athens are not verifiable. The

seventh-century testimonia about philosophy instruction in Athens could be the result of a laxed

attitude after the Justinian dynasty. The debate over the closure appears to lack a key distinction

between the Academy (as in Platos Academy and those operating intentionally as his

inheritors) and generic philosophical teaching. 77 Can scholars really call the Neoplatonic school

of the early 500s the Academy? Similarly, what is not to say that philosophy was taught in

Athens at a later date? Is Cameron right when he writes: The Academy must have become a

symbol of paganism as never before.?78 Much effort has been expended on delineating the

Academy as a pagan space in opposition to growing Christian dominance in Late Antiquity. 79

Scholars have used the closure of the Academy in Athens as a litmus test for how effectively (or

not) Christianity crushed paganism. In this way the Academy is not just a symbol of paganism,

but a symbol of the classical tradition. Did the closure of the Academy mark some watershed

moment between the classical world and Late Antiquity, or between antiquity and the medieval

world? This distinction is what is at stake in the debate as it is currently framed.

77
Watts (2006), 137, picks up on this.
78
Cameron, 29.
79
For example, Evans, 70-71: With the reign of Justinian we reach the final act of the long, unequal struggle
between Christianity and paganism. It is a nice coincidence that the year 529 marked not only the end of the
Academy in Athens but also the foundation of St Benedicts monastery at Monte Cassino.
 Haberstroh 15

Appendix

Date of CJ Date of CJ Date of Date of Date of the

1.5.18 1.11.9 & Malalas 18.47 exodus to Academys
1.11.10 Persia closure
Blumenthal - 534 529 532 532
Cameron [529] [529] 529 532 579 or 7th cent.
Chuvin 529 529 [529] 531/532 529
Evans 527 529 529 531 529
th
Fernndez 527 529 529 531 7 cent.
Hllstrm - 529 529 531/532 529
Watts 529 531 529 531 529
Wildberg 529 531 529 532 [531]
 Haberstroh 16

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