Epicurus

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Epicurus, an ancient Greek philosopher and founder of Epicureanism, lived from 341 to 270 BC. His written works numbered over 300, but only fragments and letters remain today. Much of what is known about Epicurean philosophy comes from followers and commentators who wrote after his time. For Epicurus, the goal of philosophy was to achieve a happy and tranquil life, marked by ataraxia - peace and freedom from fear - and aponia - the absence of pain. He believed in living a self-sufficient life surrounded by friends. According to him, pleasure and pain are measures of what is good and evil; death marks the end of both body and soul, so it should not be feared; the gods neither reward nor punish humans; the universe is infinite and eternal; and events are ultimately determined by the movements and interactions of atoms in empty space. The history of this bust remains uncertain, but it may have originated from a Roman original created in the 3rd century. A copy of this original is housed at The British Museum, where it bears the museum number 1805,0703.89.