“In ancient times, the Greeks held one of their most important festivals, The Olympic Games, in honour of the King of their gods, Zeus” (“Statue of Zeus at Olympia” 1). These games were first held in 776 BC, and were held at the “shrine to Zeus located on the western coast of Greece in a region called Peloponnesus” (“Statue of Zeus at Olympia” 1). A Greek artist by the name of Phidias, was commissioned to create the statue (“The Statue of Zeus at Olympia”). He began the masterpiece around 450 BC, and spent the next eight years completing it, creating a work of art out of ivory and gold (“The Statue of Zeus at Olympia”). When creating the statue, “Phidias worked in stone and bronze, he was the first to employ ivory and gold to represent the human face and form. No material so closely resembles the tint and the texture of the flesh as ivory; no metal could better represent the clothing and the hair then enameled gold” (Banks Ch. 6). Phidias made the core of the statue out of wood, and overlaid plates of both ivory and gold that he was able to fit together in such a way that not even the joints were visible (Banks Ch. 6). The statue upon completion, was place upon a substructure that was three steps high (Banks Ch. 6). “Thirty-six tall granite columns surrounded it, and three parts of its interior were separated by similar columns” (Banks Ch. 6). Around 170
The statue was a staggering 40 feet tall, which is a remarkable height. Things that have a grand stature are normally associated with being of greater power or importance, and in the case of the Athena Parthenos it portrays a Goddess like aura. The statue was also made of gold and ivory which are very esteemed and sought after materials. They are extremely valuable materials, and Phidias had made a whole 40 foot tall statue out of them.*footnote* Gold and ivory are often associated with importance and power, and are thought to be very valuable and pure. These are all qualities that would also be associated with a figure that is Goddess-like. The size and the choice of material suggest that the statue was of great importance and power, which are qualities that should be associated with a
One of the most impressive accomplishments of Ancient Greece is the remarkable structure of the Parthenon on the Acropolis. The Parthenon is one of the most inspiring works of architecture known to mankind. The project of the extraordinary Acropolis was taken on by one of the most influential leaders of history, Pericles. Pericles influenced not only the building of one of the grandest works but the example of democracy displayed by the Greeks. The architecture was unique for its time, it featured excellent structure,the breathtaking Metopes featuring the epic battles of the gods, the Frieze a detailed sculpture displaying a procession of Greeks, and was built to house the magnificent statue of Athena adorned in gold. The Parthenon was
One of the most valued pieces of art in the ancient Greek world is that of Athena Parthenos. The original statue was designed and sculpted by Phidias and placed in the parthenon in 438 B.C. The original chryselephantine statue was almost 40ft tall and was made out of ivory with gilded features. The sculpture stands tall, while wearing a tunic, an aegis, and helmet, while holding the god of victory, Nike, in her right hand and holding a spear in her left hand. There have been many replications of this statue, including one created during the Roman Period in the 2nd or 3rd century A.D. sculpted from stone and bronze. Details include a helmet with pegasoi on each side with the remains of a sphinx in the center. Athena’s hair falls in curls down her shoulders and snakes encircle her waist and tie in the
Aphrodite statues were very popular in Greece during the Hellenistic period. The marble Aphrodite of Knidos was the most renowned among the many Greek goddesses. Also written as the Aphrodite of Cnidus, the marble sculpture was created by an Attic sculptor known as Praxiteles during the 4th century BC. Arguably, it is believed to be the earliest major sculpture to show the goddess in the nude. Praxiteles also created another draped version of the marble Aphrodite of Knidos. It is said that the draped version was the first to be sold, while the nude version remained rejected
The construction of the Acropolis of Athens wasconstructed under the general Pericles. More than two years of detailed planning went into the Parthenon alone, and the first stone was laid on 28 July 447 BCE, during the Panathenaic festival. Pericles had no limit on how much the Acropolis could cast because he wanted to create a lasting monument which would both honour the goddess Athena (who presided over Athens) and proclaim the glory of the city to the world. Mnesikles, and Iktinos and the sculptor Phidias helped create the designs on the buildings. Hundreds of artisans, metal workers, craftspeople, painters, woodcarvers, and literally thousands of unskilled labourers worked on the Acropolis. Phidias created a gold and ivory statue of Athena
The Greek Gods were honored with temples gifts and statues. The most famous is probably the Athena Parthenos (see page 7). It was mode of ivory and gold and was housed in the Parthenon in Athens. The Athena Parthenos was made only by two people and is almost 12 meters (38 feet) high. It took about 9 whole years to complete. The Athena Parthenos held a human sized statue of Nike the Greek god of
Phidias, who is an exceptional sculptor, built one of the greatest temples in the ancient world: the Parthenon. Today, The Parthenon appears to be prominent. Phidias devoted this temple to Athena, and built it for the Acropolis of Athens. Although the Parthenon was built in the 5th Century BC, some of the temple still stands today.
Many Greek people valued strength and believed that it was the most important virtue of all. According to the article Athens was determined to be the most powerful, so for them to do that they decided to organize campaigns. In these campaigns they decided that building a grand building was the way to go; and in these buildings they would place grand statues. The Parthenon building was filled with statues one of them being of the greek goddess Athena. Athena was made of ivory and covered in gold; she also is depicted as having a spear and a shield in her hand. The sculptor created her this way to show that one of the main virtues was to be strong, and protect the city. The statue of Athena representing strength, was accompanied by a very strong military to protect the great structure
Power is an ideal that many strive for, and few achieve, and there is no more obvious a demonstration of power, than besting someone in a battle. The Altar of Zeus from Pergamon, Turkey exemplifies that power. Created around 175 BCE it used to stand on a platform, surrounded by columns which were no doubt as imposing as the scenes of the sculptures. It is a narration of the gods and goddesses defeat over the giants, and victory in battle is nearly synonymous with power.
The Acropolis is a rock formation reaching 400ft above ground level and is about 7 acres big. It clearly highlights the highest level of human creativity and was a source of pride for Athenians, not just because it was the biggest building of its age but because it represented power and wealth. These temples were not meant to be meeting places but homes for the communities god or goddess and a place to keep offerings. The Greek government owned the Parthenon, but it was commissioned by Pericles the great Greek statesman. The architects working on this grand design were called Iktinos and Kalilkrates two famous architects and the sculptor was Phidias who built the Athena Parthenos.
kallikrates were the architect of Greece. They built the Parthenon (Iktinos and Kallikrates, east façade of the Parthenon, Acropolis, Athens, Greece, 447-438 BCE) by using harmonic proportions. This Parthenon was really big and tall. It was one of the Doric order buildings. Inside the cella, we can see there was very huge goddess statue, Athena. The statue was about 40 feet tall (Boardman 299). They were sincerity
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia was believed to have been made by the Greek sculptor Phidias around 435 B.C. in Olympia, Greece. The statue was a massive seated figure towering over 43 feet. The stunning representation of the god Zeus was made from ivory plates and gold panels which covered its wooden framework. The sheer size of the statue was so immense that legend says that if Zeus stood up inside the temple, he would have put his head straight through the roof. The Statue of Zeus cannot be seen today and it has been said that after the destruction during the 5th century A.D. that to date, no copies have been discovered. The Statue of Zeus importance to world history is that it is one of greatest sculptural feats of the ancient world.
First off we are going to learn about ancient Greek art. The Greeks mastered the idea of sculpture, in earlier times the sculptures looked fake but by the classical period they started looking more natural with realistic-looking faces. The Greeks also liked to make pottery out of stone and clay, they usually would have mythological or religious scenes on them and grew more realistic over time. The first ancient Greek art that we will be learning about today is the Winged Victory of Samothrace. It was created around 220-185 BC made from parian and rhodian marble. On April 15, 1863 workers were excavating and uncovered parts of a statue. They then sent it to the Louvre, where it is currently on display.You can’t tell from the picture, but can you believe that this statue is over 18 feet tall!! It has been suggested that she was once holding something in her right hand, such as a trumpet, wreath, or a fillet. The base of the sculpture is made up of 23 blocks of marble.
The Statute of Zeus at Olympia was created by the Athenian sculptor Phidias (History.com Staff). This sculptor was completed and placed in the Temple of Zeus at Olympia which was the site of the ancient Olympics in mid-fifth century B.C. The statute depicted a bear-chested God of Thunder seated on a wooden throne. According to History.com (2015), holding up the thrones were two carved sphinxes which were mythical creatures with the head and chest of a woman, body of a lion and wings of a bird. The monument was decorated with gold and ivory. This statute stood at approximately 40 feet tall. The statute was so tall that it was said to almost touch the top of the temple.