What was the history of Plato's Academy?

Founded by Plato around 387 BC in Athens, the Academy served as an ancient philosophical, research, and educational center where subjects like mathematics, biology, and political science were investigated. It evolved through various periods, operating as a skeptical school during the Hellenistic era before being revived in the fifth century AD as a center for Neoplatonism. The institution was ultimately closed down by Emperor Justinian I in 529 AD.

What we know

• Plato founded the Academy in Athens around 387 BC. [1, 2]
• Aristotle studied at the Academy for twenty years from 367 BC to 347 BC before founding his own school, the Lyceum. [2]
• The original Academy persisted through the Hellenistic period as a skeptical school until the death of Philo of Larissa in 83 BC. [2]
• A revived Academy was re-established as a center for Neoplatonism in AD 410, lasting until it was closed by Justinian I in 529 AD. [2]

Where to go next

• compared withHow did Aristotle's Lyceum differ from the Academy?
• whoWho was Philo of Larissa?
• what followedWhat happened when Justinian closed the school in 529 AD?
• how it workedWhat subjects were taught at the ancient Academy?
• whereWhere was the physical site of the Academy in Athens?
• an unexpected connectionHow did a fifteenth-century Italian discussion group revive the Academy's name?Although the ancient Athenian institution ended in antiquity, the name reappeared during the Florentine Renaissance through an informal group forming around Marsilio Ficino.

Sources

• [1]Platonic Academy (Wikidata Q193093) · CC0 1.0
• [2]Platonic Academy · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]Theory of forms · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]Platonic Academy (Florence) · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Platonic solid · CC BY-SA 4.0