Timagoras of Athens (Τιμαγόρας ὁ Ἀθηναῖος)

Life Timagoras of Athens was an Athenian envoy of the 5th century BCE. He is known solely from an inscription recording a diplomatic mission he undertook with a colleague, Leon, to the court of the Persian King Artaxerxes I [1]. This stele details the honors and gifts they received, providing the only secure evidence of his existence. No further biographical details survive.

Works No literary works by Timagoras are attested. His historical record derives entirely from his documented diplomatic activity.

Significance Timagoras’s significance lies in his role as a documented Athenian diplomat to the Achaemenid Persian Empire. His mission provides concrete evidence for the state of Athenian-Persian relations in the period between the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars, illustrating the protocols of gift-exchange and honor in Greco-Persian diplomacy [1]. He holds no attested significance as an author.

Sources 1. Perseus Digital Library (Tufts University): Inscription referencing Timagoras and Leon as Athenian envoys. https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0058%3Aentry%3Dtimago%2Fras