Damascius (c.462–540)

The late Neoplatonist philosopher Damascius was the last head of the Platonist school in Athens. He largely accepted the metaphysical system of the Athenian School of Syrianus and Proclus, but subjected it to acute dialectical scrutiny in a series of commentaries, and especially in his treatise On First Principles. His philosophical position is not comprehensible without bearing in mind that of Proclus, although on certain issues, such as the nature of the first principle and of the soul, he prefers the solutions of the earlier Iamblichus.