22 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Italian Research Team May Have Found Plato’s Burial Site in Athens

Graziano Ranocchia, a papyrologist at the University of Pisa, said he found Plato’s exact burial place based on papyri findings in Herculaneum near Naples.

Discovered in the 18th century, the Herculaneum papyri comprise more than 1,800 prehistoric scrolls. In the opulent Villa of the Papyri, a Roman estate in Herculaneum, Italy, they were discovered. Buried and protected by volcanic ash for thousands of years, the Herculaneum scrolls represent the only large-scale library from the classical world that has survived in its entirety.

Using AI technology, scientists are now attempting to decipher the papyri. Found new words that indicated a 30% increase in text when compared to a 1991 analysis.

The discovery is contained in a thousand new or differently read words of the papyrus containing the History of the Academy of Philodemus of Gadara.

The discovery was revealed by papyrologist Graziano Ranocchia of the University of Pisa, presenting the mid-term results of the GreekSchools research project conducted with the National Research Council at the National Library in Naples.

The archaeological site of Plato's academy. Photo: Tomisti, CC BY-SA 3.0
The archaeological site of Plato’s academy. Photo: Tomisti, CC BY-SA 3.0

Papyrologist Graciano Ranocchia claimed that the findings indicate that Plato was buried in the “Academy” named after him in Athens, in a garden near the “Temple of the Muses.” This breakthrough stems from a fresh interpretation of papyri written by Philodemus of the Epicurean school, detailing the history of the Academy.

Known as simply “The Academy,” or Plato’s Academy, was a well-known school in ancient Athens that was established outside the city walls in the northwest of the city in 387 BC. The legendary hero Academos is credited with giving the site its name.

Reexamined Herculaneum papyri by researchers indicate that Plato might have been sold into slavery either in 399 BC following Socrates’ passing or in 404 BC during the Spartan conquest of Aegina. This refutes earlier theories that dated the incident to 387 BC, during Plato’s stay in Syracuse.

There are differences in the ways that Cicero and Hermippus relate Plato’s demise: Cicero says he died while writing, while Hermippus says he died at a wedding at the age of 81 and was interred in the Academy.

Cover Photo: “The School of Athens” by Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino. Source

Related Articles

More than 1,300 prehistoric burial mounds in western Azerbaijan systematically surveyed for the first time

2 January 2025

2 January 2025

Over 1,300 archaeological sites in Azerbaijan were systematically surveyed and documented in two field campaigns in 2021 and 2023 by...

Ancient Roman Breakwater Discovered Underwater in Misenum: Sculptures and Architecture Reused to Tame the Sea

27 June 2025

27 June 2025

An underwater excavation off the coast of Bacoli, in southern Italy, has uncovered a remarkable Roman-era breakwater built from reused...

In Lviv, Ukraine, a secret room where Jews were hiding in city sewers during the Nazi Holocaust has been unearthed

7 November 2021

7 November 2021

In the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, diggers have uncovered new hiding spots in underground sewers where some Jews managed...

7,000 years ago the earliest evidence for the cultivation of a fruit tree came from the Jordan valley

17 June 2022

17 June 2022

Tel Aviv University and Jerusalem’s Hebrew University researchers have unraveled the earliest evidence for the domestication of a fruit tree....

Archeologists Discover Two Sphinxes measure 26 feet in length in Egyptian Ruins

21 January 2022

21 January 2022

Archeologists have discovered the remains of two huge sphinx statues, each measuring 26 feet in length, at the funerary temple...

Archaeologists find evidence of how Iron Age Britons adapted to the Roman conquest in Winterborne Kingston

29 June 2024

29 June 2024

Archaeologists from Bournemouth University (BU) have discovered human remains and artifacts which give new insight into how early Britons adapted...

A 13th-Century Italian Fresco Reveals the Medieval Church’s Use of Islamic Altar Tents

3 February 2025

3 February 2025

A recently rediscovered 13th-century fresco in Ferrara, Italy, offers significant insights into the medieval practice of utilizing Islamic tents to...

2600-year-old Med period artifacts found in Oluz Höyük, in Turkey

17 October 2022

17 October 2022

During the Oluz Höyük excavations in Amasya, artifacts dating back to the Med Kingdom period were found, dating back to...

Viking Gold Treasure Unearthed on Isle of Man by Veteran Metal Detectorist

2 June 2025

2 June 2025

A remarkable piece of Viking gold has been unearthed on the Isle of Man, shedding new light on the island’s...

One of the greatest gold treasures in Danish history found in Vindelev

6 September 2021

6 September 2021

Near the town of Jelling in Denmark, one of the biggest treasures ever found dating from the sixth century has...

3000 years old wooden wishing well discovered in Germany

7 January 2023

7 January 2023

In the town of Germering, in the Germany state of Bavaria, archaeologists have unearthed the remains of a well-preserved Bronze...

Surprising Discovery: In Guatemala, archaeologists uncover hidden neighborhood in the ancient Maya city

28 September 2021

28 September 2021

A recent lidar analysis revealed, the region surrounding Central Tikal’s Lost World Complex, which was long thought to be a...

Archaeologists discover rare Caanite inscription on ancient ivory comb

12 November 2022

12 November 2022

Israeli archaeologists discovered a rare inscription on an ivory comb that sheds new light on the Canaanite language’s use some...

Ancient Tombs and 2-Meter Sarcophagus with Hieroglyphics Unearthed Near Aga Khan Mausoleum in Aswan

11 July 2025

11 July 2025

A joint Egyptian-Italian archaeological team has unearthed a significant collection of ancient rock-cut tombs near the Aga Khan Mausoleum on...

A 3800-year-old cylinder seal was discovered at Turkey’s Tepebag Mound excavations

8 July 2022

8 July 2022

In the 2022 excavations of Tepebag Mound, located around Taşköprü, the center of Adana province in Turkey’s Mediterranean Region, a...