Stoa Poikile
The Painted Stoa in the Athenian Agora whose famous battle paintings gave its name to Stoic philosophy when Zeno of Citium taught there around 300 BC.
The Story of Stoa Poikile
The Stoa Poikile (Painted Colonnade) was a covered walkway on the north side of the Athenian Agora, built around 475-450 BC. Its walls were decorated with large panel paintings by the greatest artists of the age: Polygnotus, Micon, and Panainos. The paintings depicted four scenes — the Battle of Marathon (with the gods Pan and Athena fighting alongside the Greeks), the Battle of Oenoe, the fall of Troy, and the Battle of Thermopylae against the Amazons. These paintings made the Stoa one of Athens' premier tourist attractions. Around 300 BC, the philosopher Zeno of Citium began teaching in the Stoa, and his followers became known as "Stoics" — literally "people of the porch." The philosophy of endurance, virtue, and acceptance of fate that Zeno developed beneath these paintings of heroic warfare would become one of the most influential philosophical systems in history.
Parents
Peisianax (builder)
Symbols
Fun Fact
Stoicism — one of the most influential philosophies in history, practised by Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, and Epictetus, and now experiencing a massive revival through books like Ryan Holiday's The Obstacle Is the Way — is named after a porch. Zeno just happened to teach under a colonnade with good paintings. If he'd taught in a garden (like Epicurus) or a gymnasium (like Aristotle), "Stoicism" would have a completely different name. The entire philosophical tradition is named after a piece of architecture, not an idea.
Words We Inherited
English words and phrases that trace back to this myth. See our full guide to English words from Greek mythology.
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