Diogenes Laërtius · fl. 3rd century CE
Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.11 — Diogenes Laërtius on Zeno
Translation by R. D. Hicks (1925)
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.11
Reported speech · Diogenes Laërtius on Zeno
it has seemed good to the people— and may it turn out well—to bestow praise upon Zeno of Citium, the son of Mnaseas, and to crown him with a golden crown according to the law, for his goodness and temperance, and to build him a tomb in the Ceramicus at the public cost. And that for the making of the crown and the building of the tomb, the people shall now elect five commissioners from all Athenians, and the Secretary of State shall inscribe this decree on two stone pillars and it shall be lawful for him to set up one in the Academy and the other in the Lyceum. And that the magistrate presiding over the administration shall apportion the expense incurred upon the pillars, that all may know that the Athenian people honour the good both in their life and after their death.
Cite this passage
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 7.11 (on Zeno), tr. R. D. Hicks (1925)
https://whatwouldstoicsdo.com/passage/lives-of-the-stoics/7.11
Diogenes Laërtius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers, Book VII, tr. R. D. Hicks (Loeb, 1925). Text: Perseus Digital Library (CC BY-SA 4.0). Sources and licences
In plain English
AI-written notesThe decree continues by granting Zeno a golden crown, a public tomb and inscribed pillars, so that everyone will know the city honours good people both in life and after death. A formal civic record with no practical advice.
Older wording
- “Ceramicus”
- — a district of Athens used as a burial place for honoured citizens
- “Lyceum”
- — the grounds where Aristotle's school met in Athens
Themes and situations
- Virtue and character
- Reputation and others' opinions
- Community and our duty to others
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