Aesop's fables have simple moral endings that remain relevant over time. While the details of Aesop's life are uncertain, he is thought to have lived in ancient Greece between 620-560 BC. His fables were mentioned in other ancient Greek works and helped pass the time for Socrates in jail. The first written collection was compiled in Alexandria, though no copies survive. William Caxton published the first English translation in 1484, seeing the stories as ageless childhood tales. Not all attributed fables were Aesop's original work, as details changed over translations and retellings over thousands of years.