Archelaus (philosopher) Archelaus (philosopher) Archelaus (; ; fl. 5th century BCE) was an Ancient Greek philosopher, a pupil of Anaxagoras, and may have been a teacher of Socrates. He asserted that the principle of motion was the separation of hot from cold, from which he endeavoured to explain the formation of the Earth and the creation of animals and humans. Archelaus was a philosopher of the Ionian School, called "Physicus" from having been the first to teach natural philosophy at Athens. This statement of Diogenes Laërtius, is contradicted by Clement of Alexandria, but the two may be reconciled by supposing that Archelaus
A Philosopher by Lamplight were also the emblem of the Darwin family which included Erasmus Darwin who was a leading member of the Lunar Society and Derby Philosophical Society which linked key men in the age of enlightenment. Experts believe that this painting was based on Salvator Rosa's "Democritus in Meditation". Wright’s friend John Hamilton Mortimer was a follower of Rosa’s so it is possible that Wright would have seen Rosa's work or an engraving of it. Democritus was a Greek philosopher who is remembered for making fun of the foolishness of mankind. Though the painting's subtitle is "A Hermit Studying Anatomy", his attitude