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Philip (or Philippus) of Opus (Greek: Φίλιππος Ὀπούντιος), was a philosopher and a member of the Academy during Plato's lifetime. Philip was the editor of Plato's Laws. Philip of Opus is probably identical with the Philip of Medma (or Mende), the astronomer, who is also described as a disciple of Plato.

Plato's Laws and Epinomis

According to Diogenes Laërtius, Philip of Opus was a disciple of Plato,[1] who was responsible for transcribing Plato's Laws into twelve books, and writing the thirteenth book (the Epinomis) himself:

Some say that Philip the Opuntian transcribed his [Plato's] work, Laws, which was written in wax [wooden tablets coated with wax]. They also say that the Epinomis [the thirteenth book of the Laws], is his.[2]

In the Suda, Philip is listed anonymously under the heading of philosophos ("philosopher"), his name being lost from the beginning of the entry:

Philosopher who divided the Laws of Plato into 12 books; for he himself is said to have added the 13th. And he was a pupil of Socrates and of Plato himself, occupied with the study of the heavens. Living in the time of Philip of Macedon, he wrote the following: On the distance of the sun and moon; On gods; On time; On myths; On freedom; On anger; On reciprocation; On the Opuntian Lokrians; On pleasure; On passion; On friends and friendship; On writing; On Plato; On eclipse(s) of the moon; On the size of the sun and moon and earth; On lightning; On the planets; Arithmetic; On prolific numbers; Optics; Enoptics; Kykliaka; Means; etc.[3]

Since the entry is located under the heading philosophos, the defect presumably existed in the source from which the Suda borrowed. It was not until the 18th century when Ludolf Küster, the editor of the Suda,[4] identified this anonymous entry with the Philip of Opus mentioned by Diogenes Laërtius.

Philip the astronomer

Because he is identified in the Suda as an astronomer, it is generally assumed that Philip of Opus is the same person as Philip of Medma, (also called Philip of Mende)[5] who was an astronomer and mathematician and a disciple of Plato. Philip of Medma is mentioned by several ancient writers, such as Vitruvius,[6] Pliny the Elder,[7] Plutarch,[8] (who states that he demonstrated the figure of the Moon), Proclus,[9] and Alexander of Aphrodisias. His astronomical observations were made in the Peloponnese and in Locris (where Opus was a principal city), and were used by the astronomers Hipparchus, Geminus of Rhodes, and Ptolemy. He is said by Stephanus of Byzantium[10] to have written a treatise on the winds.

Notes

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1870). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

Further reading

• Tarán, Leonardo. Academica: Plato, Philip of Opus, and the pseudo-Platonic Epinomis. Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1975.

На других языках

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[de] Philippos von Opus

Philippos von Opus (altgriechisch Φίλιππος ὁ Όπούντιος) war ein antiker griechischer Philosoph des 4. Jahrhunderts v. Chr. Er verfasste neben philosophischen Schriften auch Abhandlungen über astronomische, meteorologische und mathematische Themen, die bis auf Fragmente verloren sind. Als Schüler und Vertrauter Platons war er ein prominentes Mitglied der Platonischen Akademie in Athen. Sehr wahrscheinlich ist er der Autor des zu Unrecht Platon zugeschriebenen Dialogs Epinomis.

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- [en] Philip of Opus

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[it] Filippo di Opunte

Filippo di Opunte, noto anche come Filippo di Medma (Opunte o Medma, 410 a.C. circa – 336 a. C. circa), è stato un matematico, filosofo e astronomo greco antico.

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[ru] Филипп Опунтский

Филипп Опунтский, известный также как Филипп Мендейский (середина IV до н. э.) — древнегреческий философ, астроном и математик, ученик Платона, член платоновской Академии. Редактор Законов Платона и вероятный автор Послезакония. Филипп также известен как астроном-практик, сам проводивший наблюдения и занимавшийся составлением календаря. Ряд его несохранившихся сочинений перечислен у Суды. Это книги О богах, О времени, О мифах, О свободе, О гневе, О многоугольных числах, Об арифметике и др. Как и другие ученики Платона (Спевсипп, Ксенократ, Гермодор), Филипп написал работу «О Платоне». Об его интересе к этической проблематике говорят названия не сохранившихся сочинений («О наслаждении», «О любви», «О друзьях и дружбе», «О гневе», «О свободе», «О воздаяниях»). Согласно Стефану Византийскому, у Филиппа было сочинение о ветрах.

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