About
Professor Phillip Horky is a distinguished academic holding dual roles at Durham University: Professor in the Department of Classics and Ancient History and Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy. He is Co-Director of the Durham Centre for Ancient and Medieval Philosophy (DCAMP) and a Co-Investigator on the £2.5M UKRI-funded project 'Aristoteles Pezographos'. His research focuses on ancient Greek and Roman philosophy, with specializations in metaphysics, cosmology, ethics, and political theory. Horky earned his PhD in Classics from the University of Southern California (2007) and has held prestigious fellowships at Harvard, Stanford, and the National Humanities Center.
His major contributions include monographs like Plato and Pythagoreanism (Oxford UP, 2013) and Cosmos in the Ancient World (Cambridge UP, 2019). He leads initiatives such as Project Academy, a joint effort with Tübingen University to study the Platonic tradition. Horky actively engages in academic service, serving on councils for the Hellenic Society, Institute of Classical Studies, and Gilbert Murray Trust.
Research interests span Pythagoreanism, Aristotelian stylistics, and the philosophy of democracy in antiquity. His work bridges ancient thought with modern philosophy, exploring how ancient concepts like kosmos and pneuma shaped Western intellectual history. Horky has advised numerous PhD students and secured major grants, including a British Academy Mid-Career Fellowship (2022–23) for his project on ancient democratic theory.
- Grants/Projects:
- £2.5M UKRI Frontier Research Grant (2023–28)
- €25,000 Durham-Tübingen Joint Seedcorn Fund (Project Academy)
- British Academy Fellowship (2022–23)
His publications include over 30 peer-reviewed articles and edited volumes, reflecting expertise in reconstructing Hellenistic philosophical texts and their reception. Horky advocates for Classics education, organizing initiatives to support school-level teaching through the Gilbert Murray Trust.
