A Cyclopaedia of Female Biography/Hypasia
HYPASIA,
A most beautiful, learned, and virtuous lady of antiquity, was the daughter of Theon. who governed the Platonic school at Alexandria, in Egypt, where she was born and educated in the latter part of the fourth century. Theon was famous for his extensive knowledge and learning, but principally for being the father of Hypasia, whom, on account of her extraordinary genius, he educated not only in all the qualifications of her sex, but likewise in the most abstruse sciences. She made astonishing progress in every branch of learning. Socrates, the ecclesiastical historian, a witness of undoubted veracity, at least when he speaks in favour of a heathen philosopher, tells us that Hypasia "arrived at such a pitch of learning, as very far to exceed all the philosophers of her time:" to which Nicephorus adds, "Or those of other times." Philostorgius, a third historian of the same stamp, affirms that she surpassed her father in astronomy; and Suidas, who mentions two books of her writing, one "On the Astronomical Canon of Diophantus," and another "On the Conics of Apollonius," avers that she understood all other parts of philosophy.
She succeeded her father in the government of the Alexandrian school, teaching out of the chair where Ammonius, Hierocles, and many other celebrated philosophers had taught; and this at a time when men of immense learning abounded at Alexandria, and in other parts of the Roman empire. Her fame was so extensive, and her worth so universally acknowledged, that she had a crowded auditory. One cannot represent to himself without pleasure the flower of all the youth of Europe, Asia, and Africa, sitting at the feet of a very beautiful woman, for such we are assured Hypasia was, all eagerly imbibing instruction from her mouth, and many doubtless love from her eyes; yet Suidas, who speaks of her marriage to Isidorus, relates at the same time that she died a virgin.
While Hypasia thus reigned the brightest ornament of Alexandria, Orestes was governor of the same place, under the Emperor Theodosius' and Cyril, bishop or patriarch. Orestes admired Hypasia, and as a wise governor, frequently consulted her. This created an intimacy between them highly displeasing to Cyril, who had a great aversion to Orestes, and who disapproved of Hypasia, as she was a heathen. The life of Orestes nearly fell a sacrifice to the fury of a Christian mob, supposed to have been incited by Cyril on account of this intimacy; and, afterwards, it being reported that Hypasia prevented a reconciliation between Cyril and Orestes, some men, headed by one Peter, a lecturer, entered into a conspiracy against her, waylaid her, and dragged her to the church called cæsais, where, stripping her naked, they killed her with tiles, tore her to pieces, and carrying her limbs to a place called Cinaron, there burnt them to ashes.
This happened in March, about the year 415; in the tenth year of Honorius' and the sixth of Theodosius' consulship. The weak and trifling emperor was roused from his usual indifference by such an awful crime, and threatened the assassins of this incomparable woman with a merited punishment; but at the entreaties of his friends, whom Orestes had corrupted, was induced to suffer them to escape, by which means, it is added, he drew vengeance on himself and family. There are few recorded crimes of wicked men so utterly fiend-like as the unprovoked murder of the lovely, learned, and virtuous Hypasia.