Statue of Olympian Zeus
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia was a colossal chryselephantine (gold and ivory) cult image of the chief Greek deity, created by the sculptor Pheidias around 435 BCE and installed in the cella of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia in the western Peloponnese. At approximately 13 metres in height, it was one of the largest sculptures of the ancient world and ranked among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The statue has not survived; it was reportedly transported to Constantinople in late antiquity and destroyed by fire, probably in the 5th century CE.
At a glance
- Type
- Chryselephantine cult statue / Wonder of the Ancient World
- Period
- Created c. 435 BCE; destroyed probably 5th century CE
- Style
- Classical Greek sculpture
- Location
- Temple of Zeus, Sanctuary of Olympia, Elis, Peloponnese, Greece
- Sculptor
- Pheidias of Athens
- Coordinates
- 37.6379 N, 21.6303 E
Overview
The statue depicted Zeus seated on an elaborate cedarwood throne adorned with gold, ebony, ivory, and precious stones, holding a small figure of Nike (Victory) in his right hand and a sceptre topped by an eagle in his left. Ancient descriptions by Pausanias in his Description of Greece (2nd century CE) and by Strabo provide the most detailed accounts of the statue’s appearance and iconography. The Roman general Aemilius Paullus reportedly declared upon seeing it that Pheidias alone had managed to capture in visible form the divine majesty described by Homer.
History
Pheidias was commissioned to create the statue following the completion of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, itself built between 470 and 456 BCE. He had previously created the chryselephantine statue of Athena Parthenos for the Parthenon in Athens, and brought the same technique and scale to the Zeus at Olympia. The statue stood in the temple for over eight centuries, serving as the focal point of the Panhellenic sanctuary visited by athletes and pilgrims during the quadrennial Olympic Games. In late antiquity, possibly under the emperor Theodosius II, the statue is believed to have been transported to the palace of Lausus in Constantinople, where it was destroyed in a fire in 475 CE.
What you see
The Temple of Zeus at Olympia, where the statue stood, survives as an impressive ruin within the UNESCO World Heritage archaeological site of Olympia, inscribed in 1989. The temple’s colonnade is largely fallen, its column drums scattered by ancient earthquakes, but the massive scale of the Doric peristyle is still clearly readable from the surviving fragments. The Archaeological Museum of Olympia displays original pediment sculptures, metopes from the temple, and tools found in Pheidias’s workshop excavated on the site.
Cultural significance
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia was the supreme cult image of classical Greek religion, embodying in physical form the divine power and majesty attributed to the king of the Olympian gods. Its creation by Pheidias at the height of the Periclean era represents the apex of chryselephantine sculpture, a technique demanding extraordinary resources and craftsmanship. The ancient Olympic Games held at the sanctuary ran uninterrupted from 776 BCE to 393 CE, forming the longest continuous athletic and religious tradition in classical antiquity and the direct ancestor of the modern Olympic movement.
Practical information
- Original location
- Temple of Zeus, Archaeological Site of Olympia, Elis, Peloponnese, Greece
- Statue
- Not extant; destroyed c. 475 CE
- Archaeological Museum of Olympia
- Open daily; check official Hellenic Ministry of Culture website for current hours and admission fees
- UNESCO designation
- Archaeological Site of Olympia inscribed 1989
Getting there
The archaeological site of Olympia is located in Elis in the western Peloponnese, approximately 18 kilometres from the town of Pyrgos. By train, take the OSE line from Athens (Kiato) or Patras to Pyrgos, then a local bus to Olympia (approximately 35 minutes). By car from Athens, take the E65 and A8 motorway westward; the journey takes approximately 3 hours 30 minutes. Direct buses from Athens and Patras also serve the site during the main tourist season.