Timaeus of Locri

Timaeus of Locri is presented as a philosopher from the Pythagorean school in Plato's dialogues "Timaeus" and "Critias". He is depicted as a wealthy aristocrat from Lokroi Epizephyrioi in Magna Graecia, who held high offices in his hometown before coming to Athens. Plato implies his expertise in natural philosophy and astronomy. Historically, his existence was accepted by figures like Cicero and Iamblichus. However, modern scholarship largely considers Timaeus a literary figure created by Plato, possibly inspired by Pythagoreans like Archytas, due to the lack of independent historical information. A work titled "On the Nature of the World and the Soul", formerly attributed to Timaeus of Locri, is now recognized as a pseudepigraphon likely written between the 1st century BC and 1st century AD. This work summarizes Plato's "Timaeus" and shows influences of Middle Platonism, possibly originating from Alexandria. It was influential in Neoplatonist circles, who saw it as evidence of a unified Pythagorean-Platonic tradition. The work was translated into Latin by Giorgio Valla and later included in collected works of Plato, often considered a source for Plato's dialogue until modern philology clarified its pseudepigraphic nature.