Statue of Zeus at Olympia
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia carved by the Greek sculptor Phidias (5th century BC) in 433 BC, in what is presently Greece, was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World. In 394 AD, it was probably taken to Constantinople (modern Istanbul) where it is said to have been destroyed by raging fires.
The seated statue occupied the whole width of the aisle of the temple that was built to house it. According to a contemporary source, it was about 12 metres tall. "It seems that if Zeus were to stand up," the geographer Strabo noted early in the 1st century BCE, "he would unroof the temple." Zeus was carved from ivory and was seated on a magnificent throne made of cedarwood and inlaid with ivory, gold, ebony and precious stones. In Zeus' right hand there was a small statue of Nike, the goddess of victory, and in his left hand a shining sceptre on which an eagle perched. Visitors like the Roman general Aemilius Paulus were moved to awe by the godlike majesty that Phidias had captured.
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