Hey guys! This week I am writing about the works of Phidias! Phidias is known as one of the greatest artists of classical Greece. His most popular accomplishments include the statue of Zeus at Olympia and the Athena Parthenos.
The statue of Zeus at Olympia was a HUGE seated statue that stood around 42 feet tall! The statue was made at the sanctuary of Olympia in Greece and put up in the temple of Zeus, which was built around 460 B.C.E. by the Greek architect Libon. The statue of Zeus's skin was made of ivory and the things the statue wore were made of gold. In Zeus's left hand was a rod with an eagle on top. In his right hand was a figure of the "victory" goddess Nike. The statue was known as one of the greatest pieces of art in history and is one of the seven wonders of the world. Unfortunately, the statue no longer exists. Nobody knows what happened to the statue of Zeus but some say that it had been taken by some wealthy Greeks to Constantinople. There is nothing there today because there was a terrible fire in 462 C.E. that supposedly destroyed the statue. The statue's old home, the temple of Zeus, was also harmed by fire in the fifth century C.E. The temple closed after the Olympic games were banned around 391 C.E.
The statue of Zeus at Olympia was a HUGE seated statue that stood around 42 feet tall! The statue was made at the sanctuary of Olympia in Greece and put up in the temple of Zeus, which was built around 460 B.C.E. by the Greek architect Libon. The statue of Zeus's skin was made of ivory and the things the statue wore were made of gold. In Zeus's left hand was a rod with an eagle on top. In his right hand was a figure of the "victory" goddess Nike. The statue was known as one of the greatest pieces of art in history and is one of the seven wonders of the world. Unfortunately, the statue no longer exists. Nobody knows what happened to the statue of Zeus but some say that it had been taken by some wealthy Greeks to Constantinople. There is nothing there today because there was a terrible fire in 462 C.E. that supposedly destroyed the statue. The statue's old home, the temple of Zeus, was also harmed by fire in the fifth century C.E. The temple closed after the Olympic games were banned around 391 C.E.
The Athena Parthenos was built by Phidias in 449 B.C.E. It was over 40 feet tall and 6 feet wide. Like the statue of Zeus, the Athena Parthenos was also made of ivory and gold. The statue also holds a figure of the "victory" goddess Nike in her right hand. To Athena's left sits a spear, a serpent, and a shield. On the shield Phidias included a picture of himself and King Pericles. Athena Parthenos means "Athena the Virgin" in Greek. The statue was built when King Pericles instructed Phidias to make a statue that would signify Athens's victory over the Persian empire. The statue stood until around the fifth century B.C.E. when it disappeared. There have been many replicas made. Two of the most popular are the one in Rome and the one in Nashville, Tennessee. No one really knows what happened to the Athena Parthenos, but the most common theory is that the statue was being transported when it was stolen by the Romans. It is said that the Romans either chopped the statue up and sold it, or that the one in Rome actually isn't a replica!