Adrianus

Who was Adrianus?

Adrianus of Tyre, also written as Hadrian and Hadrianos, was a sophist of ancient Athens who flourished under the emperors Marcus Aurelius and Commodus.

He was the pupil of the celebrated Herodes Atticus, and obtained the chair of philosophy at Athens during the lifetime of his master. His advancement does not seem to have impaired their mutual regard; Herodes declared that the unfinished speeches of his scholar were "the fragments of a colossus," and Adrianus showed his gratitude by a funeral oration which he pronounced over the ashes of his master. Among a people who rivalled one another in their zeal to do him honor, Adrianus did not show much of the discretion of a philosopher. His first lecture commenced with the modest encomium on himself, Πάλιν εκ Φοινίκης γράμματα, while in the magnificence of his dress and equipage he affected the style of the hierophant of philosophy.

A story may be seen in Philostratus of his trial and acquittal for the murder of a begging sophist who had insulted him: Adrianus had retorted by styling such insults δήγματα κόρεων, but his pupils were not content with weapons of ridicule.