Stephanus of Alexandria (c. 580 - 640 AD) is a Christian philosopher bringing Alexandrian thought to Byzantine society. Despite moving to Constantinople he's considered the last Alexandrian intellectual before the Islamic conquest of 642.
While widely recognized for his involvement in the Neo-Platonic philosophical tradition, Stephanus also explores esoteric realms of alchemy, astrology, and astronomy. He has a keen interest in the mystical and scientific aspects of the universe.
As a philosopher, Stephanus of Alexandria is known for his insights and interpretations within the Neo-Platonic framework. His philosophical works not only reflect the teachings of prominent thinkers before him but offer a fresh perspective in the Byzantine era.
In alchemy, Stephanus explores transformative properties of matter and the quest for the philosopher's stone. His poem De Chrysopoeia refers to gold-making. He looks into the mystical aspects of transmutation and pursuit of spiritual enlightenment.
His writings on alchemy reveal a deep fascination for the hidden forces of nature and the connections between physical and metaphysical realms. Stephanus has a keen interest in astrology and astronomy, the celestial bodies and their influence on earthly affairs.
He deciphers the symbolic language of the stars, believing celestial events impact human life and destiny. His multidisciplinary approach bridges Byzantine intellectual thought with ancient philosophy and medieval science.
Stephanus studies at Alexandria, alongside Christian followers of Olympiodorus. Although Olympiodorus was pagan, his teachings are for everyone, and eventually the Christian faith adopts many of the Neoplatonic principles.
Neoplatonism
Neo-Platonism was a philosophical movement inaugurated by Plotinus (AD 204/5 - 270), which reinterpreted the ideas of the ancient Greek philosopher Plato. It argued that the world which we experience is only a copy of an ideal reality which lies beyond the material world.
Neoplatonism is a philosophical school of thought first emerging in the Greco-Roman-Egyptian timeframe of marvelous Alexandria. The philosophies gain momentum from the 3rd - 7th century and Neoplatonism is the dominant philosophical ideology of the period.
Neoplatonists believe mindful consciousness (nous) is ontologically prior to the physical realm. Adherents share with Stoics and Hermetists the idea of a unitary and unique highest principle, “the One”. This principle-monism philosophy seeks to explain everything based divine cause.
In 610, Stephanus moves to Constantinople, the capital of the empire, bringing the thought of late Alexandria into the medieval Byzantine world. He takes a position as "ecumenical professor", representing a variety of Christian churches, at the Imperial Academy.
He teaches the philosophy and arts of Plato, Aristotle, the quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music), as well as alchemy and astrology. Many works are attributed to Stephanus, some forgeries, most written at Constantinople.
Agapius of Hierapolis states Stephanus is "famous among the philosophers at that time". Stephanus dies in 640. Two years later, Egypt falls to Islam, and a Golden Age begins in the East.
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