We have, elsewhere, pointed out the historic connections between
Numenius and Plotinos. Here, it may be sufficient to recall that
Amelius, native of Numenius's home-town of Apamea, and who had
copied and learned by heart all the works of Numenius, and who later
returned to Apamea to spend his declining days, bequeathing his copy
of Numenius's works to his adopted son Gentilianus Hesychius, was the
companion and friend of Plotinos during his earliest period, editing
all Plotinos's books, until displaced by Porphyry. We remember also
that Porphyry was Amelius's disciple, before his spectacular quarrel
with Amelius, later supplanting him as editor of the works of Plotinos.
Plotinos also came from Alexandria, where Numenius had been carefully
studied and quoted by Origen and Clement of Alexandria. Further,
Porphyry records twice that accusations were popularly made against
Plotinos, that he had plagiarized from Numenius. In view of all this
historical background, we have the prima-facie right to consider
Plotinos chiefly as a later re-stater of the views of Numenius, at
least during his earlier or Amelian period. Such a conception of the
state of affairs must have been in the mind of that monk who, in the
Escoreal manuscript, substituted the name of Numenius for that of
Plotinos on that fragment[573] about matter, which begins directly
with Numenius's name of the divinity, "being and essence."[574]