Anaximander in context : new studies in the origins of Greek philosophy

306 Pages·2003·5.93 MB·English

by  Anaximander.

87264 cover 9/13/02 12:48 PM Page 1
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100 PHILOSOPHY
100 C Anaximander in Context
100 ou
100 pr New Studies in the Origins of Greek Philosophy
i
50 Anaximander in Context e,
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New Studies in the Origins of Greek Philosophy
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n Dirk L. Couprie, Robert Hahn,
100 Dirk L.Couprie,Robert Hahn,and Gerard Naddaf ,
a
100 n and Gerard Naddaf
d
100 Promoting a new,broadly interdisciplinary horizon for future studies in early Greek N
philosophy,Dirk L.Couprie,Robert Hahn,and Gerard Naddaf establish the cultural con-
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text in which Anaximander’s thought developed and in which the origins of Greek phi- d
RED losophy unfolded in its earliest stages. In order to better understand Anaximander’s d
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GRN achievement,the authors call our attention to the historical,social,political,technological, f
BLU cosmological, astronomical, and observational contexts of his thought. Anaximander in
Contextbrings to the forefront of modern debates the importance of cultural context,and
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the indispensability of images to clarify ancient ideologies.
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100 “A fascinating and innovative piece of scholarship.It makes a number of significant
100 arguments that help to illuminate Anaximander’s thought,in particular the need to com- A
prehend the culture of Archaic Miletos, the strong role of architecture as an essential
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element to understanding Anaximander (not a new view but one here carried further
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than ever before),and the need not to dismiss Anaximander’s stranger views on astronomy
25 just because they are difficult to comprehend.” x
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100 — D.W.Roller,Ohio State University m
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Dirk L.Couprieis an independent researcher and former Associate Professor at the
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University of Leiden. Robert Hahn is Professor of Philosophy at Southern Illinois
100 University at Carbondale.He is the author of several books,including Anaximander and d
75 the Architects:The Contributions of Egyptian and Greek Architectural Technologies to the Origins e
r
50 of Greek Philosophy,also published by SUNY Press.Gerard Naddafis Associate Professor
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25 and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at York University.He is the translator and n
editor of Plato the Mythmaker by Luc Brisson.
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100 A volume in the SUNY series in Ancient Greek Philosophy o
100 Anthony Preus,editor n
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State University of New York Press
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www.sunypress.edu
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50 EB(version Y
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Anaximander
in
Context
SUNY series
in
Ancient Greek Philosophy
Anthony Preus, editor
Anaximander
in
Context
New Studies in the Origins
of Greek Philosophy
Dirk L. Couprie, Robert Hahn, and Gerard Naddaf
State University of New York Press
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
© 2003 State University of New York
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever
without written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval
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without the prior permission in writing of the publisher.
For information, address State University of New York Press,
90 State Street, Suite 700, Albany, NY 12207
Production by Michael Haggett
Marketing by Patrick Durocher
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Couprie, Dirk, 1940–
Anaximander in context : new studies in the origins of Greek philosophy / Dirk
Couprie, Robert Hahn, and Gerard Naddaf.
p. cm. — (SUNY series in ancient Greek philosophy)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 0-7914-5537-8 (alk. paper) — ISBN 0-7914-5538-6 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Anaximander. 2. Philosophy, Ancient. I. Hahn, Robert, 1952– II. Naddaf, Gerard,
1950– III. Title. IV. Series.
B208.Z7 C68 2003
182—dc21 2002070713
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
List of Illustrations ix
List of Tables xiii
Introduction 1
Anthropogony and Politogony in Anaximander of Miletus
Gerard Naddaf
Prologue 9
The Origin of Humanity in Traditional (or Mythical) Thought 10
The Origin of Animals and Humanity According to Anaximander 13
The Origin of Society According to Mythical Accounts 17
Some Reflections on the Evolution of the Polis before Anaximander 19
The Emergence of the Polis and the Invention of Politics 20
The Origin and Development of Society in Anaximander 32
The Legend of Danaus, the Danaides, and History 43
Danaus and the Alphabet 45
Anaximander’s Map: The Canvas of the Oikoumene 48
Notes 56
Proportions and Numbers in Anaximander and Early Greek Thought
Robert Hahn
Prologue 73
Proportionality in Anaximander’s Cosmic Architecture 78
Proportionality and Numbers in Archaic Architecture 90
v
vi CONTENTS
The Number “3” and Architectural Trisecting 90
The Idea of Organic Growth in Sacred Architecture 98
Metrological Studies of Ancient Buildings 100
Wesenberg’s Case for the Canon of Ionic Proportions: 1:9 not 1:10 105
Schaber’s Case Study of the Archaic Artemision:
Proportion, Numbers, and Organic Growth 109
The Temple’s Inner Built Structure is Usually 3:1—The Metrologies
of the Archaic Temples in Samos and Didyma 118
Literary Formulas and Proportionalities 121
Sculptural Formulas and Polykleitos’ Canon 125
Anaximander’s Cosmic Formula Revisited 130
The Architect’s Design Formula 130
The Architect’s Design Formula and the Cosmic Meaning of
the Roof 135
Epilogue 149
Notes 152
The Discovery of Space: Anaximander’s Astronomy
Dirk L. Couprie
Prologue 167
First Exercises in Early Greek Astronomy: The Anachronistic Fallacy 173
More Exercises in Early Greek Astronomy:
Looking at the Heavens with the Naked Eye 180
A Further Exercise in Early Greek Astronomy:
Looking at the Heavens with the Help of a Gnomon 183
A Last Exercise in Early Greek Astronomy:
Anaximander’s Map of the World 194
Anaximander’s Big Achievement: The Discovery of Space 201
The Celestial Bodies Make Full Circles around the Earth 201
The Earth Floats Unsupported in Space 202
The Celestial Bodies Lie behind One Another 208
Contents vii
Anaximander’s Numbers and a Map of His Universe 211
Wheels in Space:
A Three-Dimensional Visualization of Anaximander’s Universe 218
Anaximander and the Representation of the Heavens
in Ptolemaic Egyptian Art 228
Conclusion 237
Notes 241
Bibliography 255
Index of Concepts and Proper Names 273
Index of Classical Passages Cited 285

List of Illustrations
ANTHROPOGONY AND POLITOGONY IN
ANAXIMANDER OF MILETUS
1.1 Anaximander’s Map of the Inhabited World 54
PROPORTIONS AND NUMBERS IN ANAXIMANDER AND EARLY
GREEK THOUGHT
2.1 The Nile Delta in Egypt, Location of Temples, Saite Period 76
2.2 Anaximander’s Cosmos: Plan or Aerial View 84
2.3 Anaximander’s Cosmos (Plan View), and Reconstruction of
an Archaic Column Drum. From the Temple of Apollo
at Didyma, after Schneider 91
2.4 Trisecting a Line: a Geometrical construction 93
2.5 Trisecting A Column Drum: Applied Geometrical
Construction, after Hellner 95
2.6 Trisecting a Circle: a Geometrical Reconstruction 96
2.7 Trisected Column Drum, from Dipteros II, Samos 97
2.8 Ionic Order of Asia Minor 106
2.9 The Debate over where on the Column Drum “Lower
Diameter” is to be Measured (after Wesenberg) 107
2.10 Temple C [Late Seventh Century B.C.E.] of Artemis at
Ephesos and Temple D [Mid-Sixth Century B.C.E.] of
Artemis at Ephesos (after Schaber) 111
ix