Epicurus was born, probably in Athens, in 341 BCE, when the city was a pale reflection of its resplendent past. Epicurus' parents, Neocles and Chaerestrata, were impecunious Athenians who joined a mission of economically driven colonists. Epicurus grew up on the island of Samos and studied with Platonist Pamphilus. In 311, Epicurus moved to Mytilene, on the island of Lesbos, where he opened a school of philosophic teaching. In 306, he moved to Athens with a few of his pupils. Epicurus died in 271.