Statue Of Zeus Research Paper

692 Words2 Pages

Mason Bacot, Avery Games, and Lisbon Lopes
Western Civ.
Dr. Camp
20 August, 2017

The Statue of Zeus The Statue of Zeus is the sixth wonder of the world. It was located in Olympia, Greece from 444 B.C. to the mid fifth century A.D. The statue was made to honor the Greek’s king of gods, Zeus. Zeus was also known as the father of the Olympic games, which took place every four years to honor him. Copies of the statue were made, but none survived. Experts only have images on coins to see an idea of what the statue looked like. The architect of the statue was a man by the name of Phidias. Phidias had previously built the statue of Athena in Athens, which was over fourty feet tall. He also did much of the sculpture work on the exterior of the Temple …show more content…

It was twenty-two feet wide and over fourty feet tall, about twice as tall as the Abraham Lincoln statue. The head almost grazed the ceiling; if the statue, which was built sitting down, were to stand, it would break through the temple ceiling. The statue was erected using a technique where gold and ivory were attached to a wooden frame. The throne on which Zeus was seated was created out of gold, ebony, and ivory and inlaid with gems. Figures of Greek gods and mythical creatures were carved into it. Zeus’s skin was constructed of ivory and his hair, beard, and robes were made of gold. In his right hand, Zeus held the goddess of victory, Nike; in his left hand, Zeus held a sceptor with an eagle on top. The temple consisted of little more than the statue, but this was how it was preferred. Although, there was a pool of olive oil that was set in the ground under Zeus. One aspect of the pool was that it served as a reflecting pool: light reflected off the pool and gave an illumination effect on the statue. The main purpose of pool, however, was for the maintance of the statue. The ivory of the statue was in danger of cracking in the humid climate in Olympia, so it often had to be treated to prevent this. The decendents of the architect, Phidias, took it upon themselves to service the …show more content…

An earthquake caused damaged to it in 170 B.C.; but this damage was repaired and the statue remained. Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity and declared all gold be stripped from pagan shrines in early fourth century. The statue lost some of its wonder, but it was still standing. The Byzantine historian Goergios Kedrenos believed that a wealthy greek man named Lausus moved the statue to Constantinople as a part of his private collection of classical art. From this event, Kedrenos believed the statue was destroyed in a fire that swept through the city in 475 A.D. However, others believe the statue was still at the Olympic Temple and was burned with it in 425

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