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| Hypatia - Martyr for Philosophy |
Hypatia lectured on Plato and Aristotle, teaching philosophy and astronomy. She taught her students how to construct a silver plane astrolabe. This device is used to calculate date and time based on the position of the stars and planets.
In her time, she was considered the world's leading mathematician and astronomer, the only woman for whom such a claim can be made. Synesius (Bishop of Ptolemais, previously a student of Hypatia) described her as "....a person so renowned, her reputation seemed literally incredible. We have seen and heard for ourselves she who honourably presides over the mysteries of philosophy". Hypatia is probably the first female mathematician whose life is somewhat recorded. There are many works that have been linked to Hypatia, but as with other female philosophers from ancient history, it is hard to establish authorship.
At the time that Hypatia was living in Alexandria, it was a cosmopolitan melting pot of different religions and races. It is thought that Hypatia was probably Pagan. There is no record of her being married, but there is a story that she tried to discourage any potential suiters by playing the lute. Presumably she must have been a very bad player. But when this tuneful refusal didn't work Hypatia simply said 'No', displaying her bloody menstrual rags and declaring "This is what you really love, my young man, but you do not love beauty for its own sake". One scholar, Damascius, further relates that one young man was so traumatized that he abandoned his desires for her immediately.
During Hypatia's lifetime, religious tensions were starting to build in Alexandria. Cyril of Alexandria, Patriarch of Alexandria, started closing all the pagan temples and jewish synagogues, confiscating their property. Seventh century Egyptian Coptic bishop John of Nikiu alleged in his chronicle that Hypatia was engaged in satanic practices, “...there appeared in Alexandria a female philosopher, a pagan named Hypatia, and she was devoted at all times to magic, astrolabes and instruments of music, and she beguiled many people through her Satanic wiles…” , also insinuating that her close relationship with Governor Theophilus caused him to stop going to church.
In March 415 AD a christian mob raided Hypatia’s carriage as she was on her way home. They dragged her in to a former pagan temple (now a christian church), stripped her naked and beat her to death with bricks and stones. Some sources add that they removed her eyes. Once dead, they tore her body limb from limb, dragging them through the town and finally setting them alight. Throughout history, philosophers were effectively untouchable, so this murder sent shockwaves through the ancient world. Her death may have been politically motivated as she was accused of meddling with political relationships. There is also a suggestion that Hypatia was involved in the controversial idea that the date they celebrated easter that year was actually wrong. There is no evidence that Cyril of Alexandria was to blame for Hypatia’s death, but it is widely speculated that he ordered it. Coincidentally, later on in the early 420’s AD, Cyril dominated the Alexandrian council. Cyril is known to history as St Cyril of Alexandria, Patriarch and Confessor. This religious bigot and alleged murderer was canonised.
Named a “Martyr for Philosophy”, Hypatia's death has made her a powerful feminist symbol and a figure of affirmation for intellectual endeavour in the face of ignorant prejudice.
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| Astrolabe - Hypatia taught her students how to make this instrument. An early astrolabe was invented in the Hellenistic civilization by Apollonius of Perga between 220 and 150 BC, often attributed to Hipparchus. |
