The Shelves · Philosophy
Commentary on Aristotle's On Interpretation, and lecture notes on other works
I · The entry, in his form
In the table of Philosophy
Conjectured · Our reconstructionour placementc. 440–520 CE. Studied with Proclus in Athens and taught at Alexandria for decades, reading Aristotle as the gateway to Plato. His pupils included Philoponus, Simplicius and Olympiodorus, and his lectures are the backbone of the Alexandrian commentaries on Aristotle.
Commentary on Aristotle's On Interpretation, and lecture notes on other works
Opening words not preserved.
Length: not counted
Above, his entry form, filled from what we know. Below, ours.
II · Does it survive? Where to read it
Survives in large part
Was it in Alexandria?
Known · AttestedWritten in Alexandria.
On the table: written in Alexandria; no evidence it was in the Library.
Read it today
English translations in the Ancient Commentators on Aristotle series (Blank 1996 and later volumes).
III · In the show
- Platonism, Neoplatonism & New Distinctions, episode 22, at 2 minutes 13 secondsTranscriptPlatonism, Neoplatonism and the new distinction.Known: attested
- Neoplatonic Influence on Qabalah, episode 17, at 45 minutes 12 secondsTranscriptKnown: attested
- Tree of Life, Henads & Neoplatonic Influence, episode 24, at 51 minutes 24 secondsTranscriptKnown: attested
+ 14 more
- Pagan theurgy and Neoplatonism influences, episode 16, at 22 minutes 21 secondsTranscriptPagan theurgy and Neoplatonic influences on the Golden Dawn (station 3 of Martinism and Reintegration).Known: attested
- Plato’s Cratylus & Critique of Relativism, episode 30, at 1 hour 49 minutes 2 secondsTranscript“according to Olympiadoris they're in pairs”Olympiodorus, the last great pagan Platonist of Alexandria, on the Iamblichean curriculum.Known: attested
- Platonism, Neoplatonism & New Distinctions, episode 22, at 2 minutes 13 secondsTranscript“he would have considered himself just a platonist just a philosopher”Right: the label is modern.Known: attested
- Path: The Path of the Theurgist, station 1Locate the aim of theurgy.Known: attested
- Path: Martinism and Reintegration, station 3See Christ as the theurgic model. Iamblichean theurgy, Proclus, Plotinus and Plato behind the Golden Dawn.Known: attested
- Philosophy · Chronology: Boethius writes the Consolation'At Alexandria Hermias and Ammonius teach Plato and Aristotle side by side'.Known: attested
- Philosophy · Chronology: Justinian closes the Athenian school'Alexandria's school taught on into the seventh century'.Known: attested
- Alchemy · Chronology: Arabic systematizationGap note: Synesius, the alchemical Olympiodorus, Stephanos of Alexandria.Known: attested
- Symbolism · Chronology: Horapollo's HieroglyphicaHorapollo's Hieroglyphica.Known: attested
- Mysticism · Ladders of AscentKnown: attested
- Theurgy · De Mysteriis VKnown: attested
- Theurgy develops in Neoplatonic ritual philosophyTheurgy in Neoplatonic ritual philosophy.Known: attested
IV · Sources and the living entry
Ancient references
- Damascius, Philosophical History (fragment on Ammonius's agreement)
Modern scholarship (2)
- D. Blank, Ammonius: On Aristotle On Interpretation 1-8 (London: Duckworth, 1996).
- E. J. Watts, City and School in Late Antique Athens and Alexandria (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2006)
Entry checked 31 Oct 2026 · no corrections · Suggest a correction ›
COMMENTARY ON ARISTOTLE'S ON INTERPRETATION, AND LECTURE NOTES ON OTHER WORKS
Beside it on the table
- Origen of Alexandria, Commentary on the Gospel of Johnbegun c. 231 CE in Alexandria; continued in Caesarea · Survives in large part
- Hierocles of Alexandria (commentary); the Golden Verses are anonymous, Commentary on the Golden Verses of Pythagorascommentary c. 430–450 CE; the Verses Hellenistic or early imperial · Survives whole
- Olympiodorus the Younger, Commentaries on Plato's Alcibiades I, Gorgias and Phaedo, and on Aristotlec. 525–565 CE · Survives in large part
- John Philoponus, Against Proclus on the Eternity of the World529 CE · Survives in large part