Timaeus of Tauromenium (Τιμαῖος ὁ Ταυρομενίτης) was a Greek historian born c. 350 BCE in Sicily [1][2]. The son of Andromachus, founder of Tauromenium, he was exiled by the tyrant Agathocles around 317/316 BCE and spent at least fifty years in Athens [1][2]. There he studied under Philiscus of Miletus and composed his historical works; he died at an advanced age, possibly around 260 BCE [1][2].

His major work was the Histories or Sicilian History (Sikelika), a comprehensive account of Sicily and the western Greeks from mythical times to at least 289 BCE [1][2][3]. He also authored the Olympionikai, a chronological list of Olympic victors, and On Pyrrhus, concerning Pyrrhus of Epirus’s campaigns [1][2]. All survive only in fragments cited by later authors like Polybius and Diodorus Siculus [1][2].

Timaeus was the preeminent historian of the western Greeks before Polybius, and his work became the standard authority for the region [1][2]. He pioneered methodological advances, notably using Olympic victor lists to establish a unified chronology for Greek history [1][2]. His reputation was controversial; Polybius criticized him harshly for pedantry and inexperience, while others like Dionysius of Halicarnassus acknowledged his wide learning despite a polemical style [1].

Sources 1. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Classics (Oxford University Press): https://oxfordre.com/classics/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.001.0001/acrefore-9780199381135-e-6407 2. Encyclopædia Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Timaeus-of-Tauromenium 3. Perseus Digital Library (Tufts University): http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0004%3Aentry%3Dtimaeus