Leverhulme Lecture & Book Launch: Valentina Calzolari (Geneva/Oxford), 'The Reception of Neoplatonism in Armenia'

This fifth Leverhulme Lecture will stress how late ancient Neoplatonism  was received and transmitted in Armenia over the centuries. Special emphasis will be placed on the corpus of the Armenian translations of the Greek commentaries on Aristotelian logic by David, a Neoplatonist who taught at the School of Alexandria in the sixth century. Moreover, it will examine the construction of the legend of David, called the “Invincible”, in the Armenian tradition. 

The Armenian reception of Greek thought is part of a collective volume recently published by V. Calzolari on the liberal arts – including philosophy – in Armenia: Les arts libéraux et les sciences dans l’Arménie ancienne et médiévale (Textes et Traditions 36), Paris, Librairie Philosophique J. Vrin, 2023. This volume’s publication will be celebrated with a book launch following the presentation.

Valentina Calzolari is Professor in Armenian Studies at the University of Geneva and Leverhulme Visiting Professor at the University of Oxford (January-July 2021 and May-July 2023).