---
title: On the Nature of Numbers
title_greek: Ἀπόσπασμα
author: "Butherus "
eul_wid: rqw-aa
eul_aid: rqw
canonical: "https://eulogikon.org/works/butherus-nature-numbers-rqw-aa"
period: Roman
dialect: Koine
domain: Philosophy
format: Treatise
license: "https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/"
---

# On the Nature of Numbers

*Ἀπόσπασμα*

**Author:** Butherus 

**eul_wid:** `rqw-aa` · [HTML page](https://eulogikon.org/works/butherus-nature-numbers-rqw-aa)

## Text

### 59 (3t)

Περὶ ἀριθμῶν Stob. 1.1 pr. 5 p. 18 Wa. (Mullach 2 p. 50) Βουθήρου Περὶ ἀριθμῶν. Ἀριθμὸς ἐκ μονάδων σύγκειται ... ὅπερ ἐστὶν ἀρχὴ τῶν ὄντων καὶ μέτρον καὶ ἀσύνθετον καὶ ἀγένητον καὶ ἀίδιον καὶ μόνον καὶ εἰλικρινές, ὃ χωρὶς τῶν ἄλλων ἐστὶ καὶ αὐτὸ καθ’ ἑαυτὸ καὶ ἀρχὴ καὶ πρώτη φύσις, καὶ μαθεῖν αὐτὸ μηδ’ ἄλλο διορισαμένους μόνον ἐστὶν εἰλικρινὲς αὑτὸ δηλοῦν. Ὁ περισσὸς τοῦ ἀρτίου τελεώτερός ἐστιν. ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἀρχὴν καὶ τέλος καὶ μέσον ἔχει, ὁ δὲ τοῦ μέσου στερεῖται. καὶ ὁ μέν, ὁπόταν γεννῶνται ἀνὰ λόγον καὶ πρὸς μονάδας, ταῖς αὑτοῦ χώραις καταλαμβάνει τοὺς ταῖς γραμμαῖς περιεχομένους· ὁ δ’ ἐν οἰκείᾳ μὲν γινόμενος οὐδέποτε περαίνεται, ὅταν δ’ ἐν περισσῇ γένηται, αὐτός τε πέρατος τυγχάνει καὶ τὴν πλευρὰν λόγον ἔχουσαν ἴσχει. Τὸ ἓν οὐσία καὶ φύσις καὶ νοῦς καὶ μήνυμα· ἀρχὴν γὰρ καὶ μέσον καὶ πέρας ἔχον ἐστί· καὶ τὰ ἄλλα δὲ τούτου μετείληφεν ἃ ἔστι καὶ νοεῖται τῇ τούτου φύσει ἕκαστον ἀπὸ τῶν ἄλλων εἰλικρινούμενον καὶ εἰκών τε καὶ εἴδωλα τοῦ ἑνὸς γιγνόμενα.

## License and provenance

Eulogikon publishes public-domain Greek texts in cleaned, structured, readable form and makes no copyright claim over that preparation (Public Domain Mark 1.0, https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/). Cite as `eul_wid: rqw-aa`.