Despite differences, it would seem that Plato and Aristotle agreed in according epistemic and educational significance to the arts. Whereas Plato regarded the arts as (largely) sources of sophistry and delusion and was prepared to exile the artist from his ideal state, Aristotle clearly considered poetry to be of value for the education of emotions and as hence contributory to the development of practical wisdom. Still, it is no longer clear that the arts are widely regarded as sources of knowledge in general or moral wisdom in particular. For many nowadays, natural (empirical) science is the only legitimate source of knowledge, and recent (romantic and formalist) developments within the arts may also seem to question the epistemic value of artworks. This paper revisits questions of the epistemic status of the arts with a view to clarifying and defending their educational potential as sources of knowledge in general and moral insight in particular. However, it concludes on a note of some Platonic unease about the human significance of some of the realms of knowledge and understanding into which much modern and contemporary art has sought to lead us. (Contains 26 notes.)