“The god sits on a throne made of gold and ivory. On his head rests a garland resembling olive shoots. In his right hand, he holds a figure of Victory, which is also crafted from ivory and gold; she wears a ribbon and a garland on her head. In his left hand, the god holds a sceptre decorated with various types of metal, and perched on the sceptre is an eagle. The god’s sandals and robe are made of gold, with the drapery adorned with carved figures of animals and lily flowers.”
Pausanias thus describes the massive sculpture of Zeus the King of the gods in Greek mythology as one of the most intriguing sights in the ancient world. Standing at least 40 feet in height the chryselephantine behemoth stood for power and prestige in the magnificent Temple of Zeus in Olympia. Pliny goes on to say that the sculpture was wreathed with olive sprays and dressed in a gilded robe created from glass and carved with lilies and animals. Its right hand carried a miniature chryselephantine figure of a winged Nike, the divinity symbolising victory; the left hand carried a sceptre laden with numerous metals, holding an eagle.
Gold plated throne
The gold plated throne of Zeus had painted sculptures and images and embellished with gold, precious gems, ivory and ebony. The golden sandals of Zeus laid upon a footstool that depicted the war with the Amazons in relief sculpture.
A gold coin depicting the statue of Zeus
There was a passage beneath the throne with restricted access that was obstructed by painted screens. The Temple of Zeus was built around 470 BCE during the Classical period of Ancient Greece, and was part of the larger religious complex at Olympia, which was also home to the ancient Olympic Games.
The temple was built after the defeat of the Persians in the Persian Wars, a time when Greek city-states were flourishing and seeking to express their power and cultural achievements through monumental architecture. One of the lost Seven Wonders of the World the statue still continues to incite awe and curiosity regarding its remarkable appeal in the ancient world.
The statue stood at the heart of Olympia. Before the illustrious sculpture was constructed, the Olympic Games was part of a celebration honouring Zeus, held in the Greek city-state of Elis in 776 B.C.E. Zeus was the king of the gods in the Greek pantheon, and was the god of thunder and preserved the order of the cosmos securing justice and overlooking the human world. Every four years, athletes and spectators from Greek city-states journeyed to Elis during a peace treaty which brought about a time of armistice for the ever-warring Greek city-states.
That is, until the sixth-century B.C.E when both Elis and neighbouring city state Pisa tried to regulate the games and all the political and monetary advantages that brought along with it. Intense wars and invasions ushered a time of disarray and upheaval all over the territory until 464 B.C. E, when Elis finally declared victory. To mark its success, Elis undertook the construction of a grand temple to honour Zeus, utilising the war booties.
Regional architect Libon was selected to construct the temple in 460 B.C.E. A layer of fine white stucco was spread all over the sturdy limestone bases of the enormous Doric-style temple. Six Doric-columned facades fronted the structure, with 13 situated along its sides.
A second floor could be accessed by stairs from every flank of the main door while statues of Greek Personalities from mythology, adorned the temple. Statues that have survived the test of time are displayed at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens.
The friezes of the chariot race between Pelops and Oenomaus were portrayed in the front gable, while the back gable featured the centaurmachy a fight between the Lapiths and the centaurs at the wedding of Pirithous. The metopes were rectangular slabs found along the frieze and an architectural element found in the Doric order which portrayed the 12 labours of Hercules. All are expert examples of classical sculpture; although some attribute it to Phidias, its creator remains unknown to this day.
The master behind the creation
Phidias, a famous sculptor at the time, and a friend of Pericles was trusted to construct the temple’s most momentous work: a monumental sculpture of Zeus with the goddess of victory Nike beside him on his throne. Particulars of Phidias’s earlier life are far and few between. Born in Athens around 500 B.C.E, he probably served in the battle of Salamis or Plataea over the Persians. His time in the military acquired him the favour of Cimon, the wealthy Athenian politician and military man who picked Phidias to create the monument to commemorate the success of Marathon at Delphi.
Phidias’s fame circulated throughout Greece during this time, and he was granted many undertakings before his task was commissioned at Olympia. His grand plans for Zeus relied on a technique known as chryselephantine, where smooth ivory and shimmering gold are positioned over wood. Phidias was recognised for conceiving monumental sculptures utilising this application; one of his most acclaimed creations around the same time as the statue of Zeus, was the lofty sculpture devoted to Athena in the Parthenon of Athens.
The cross section of the temple of Zeus with the statue of Zeus
Greek craftsmen seldom worked with ivory on a large scale as the substance was a challenging material for sculptors to manipulate. Unrolling the various coatings of dentin that formed an elephant’s tusk to develop and mould the material to its desired effect demands expert skill and precision. Precisely which method Phidias utilised to manipulate the ivory on such an enterprising scale remains unknown. Writing in the second century C.E., the Greek geographer Pausanias states that Phidias used heat to soften the ivory. Other authorities say he drenched the ivory, with either vinegar or beer, to make it more malleable before using it.
Phidias’s workshop at Olympia was split into three naves by two rows of columns and had the same proportions as the cella, the inner chamber in the Temple of Zeus, where the sculpture would be placed. Through this, the correct ratios were guaranteed. Phidias carefully carved the particulars of Zeus’s face, body, and other elements, refining his countenance, hair, beard, and drapery to bring the sculpture to life. Diverse materials, including valuable stones and coloured glass, were incorporated to improve the statue. When it was finished, the sculpture would have been buffed to a satiny and glossy finish, enabling the gold and ivory to radiate luminously.
While certain elements of the construction were documented, the statue’s precise height remains unknown. Recorded accounts of geographer Strabo’s in the first century B.C.E, documented his first impression of the sculpture.
Strabo writes: “If Zeus waked and stood upright, he would unroof the temple.” Contemporary scholars, established on archaeology and speculation, think the statue stood at least 40 feet in height, while its stone platform, estimated to be around 20 by 32 feet, was constructed of black Eleusinian marble.
The interior
Pausanias goes on to report that the sculpture was rubbed with olive oil, to maintain the ivory surface and the wooden interior. Near the statue, there stood a raised opening at the base of the statue which formed a pool of oil. The oil reflection added an extra effect that made the sculpture appear much larger than it was.
The records of Pausanias disclose how remarkable the statue of Zeus may have been in person, but scholars are still pondering what its view may have been in the temple’s interior. The gleaming white ivory and sparkling gold would barely seem as majestic in a darkened enclosure.
Traditionally Greek temples were unobstructed spaces, but the interior required light even during the daytime. To answer how the room and the sculpture remain illuminated numerous explanations have been suggested. It is problematic to infer artificial light, like candles, lamps or torches, as its primary source, given the size of the structure. Another suggestion is that open vents might have been attached to the roof, but this explanation would leave the interior vulnerable to poor weather and rain.
The statue of Zeus raised another problem. Due to its height, the upper section ascended beyond the deck of the entranceway, so natural sunlight from the entrance could not radiate towards Zeus’s head. Light would have emitted from the entrance solely at sunrise. By mid-afternoon, the sun’s rays would be too high to directly illuminate the cella.
Recent deconstructions using ultraviolet rays and lasers have demonstrated that delicate marble planks placed on the roof may have let dim, but steady sources of sunlight to permeate throughout the chamber. This explanation would have provided enough light to display the temple’s interior and the sculpture while safeguarding them from the elements.
With the temple finished and the majestic statue within it, the formerly small sanctuary at Elis became one of the most influential religious sites in the ancient world.
Occurring on Greek coinage across Greece and beyond, the enormous Zeus evolved into one of the most celebrated sculptures in antiquity and became the foremost sculptural prototype for seated gods. Artists, millennia later, imitated Zeus’s posture and gestures in numerous artworks such as the colossus of Constantine and the Lincoln Memorial statue.
Travellers from the ancient world arrived at Olympia not just for the games but also to witness the craftsmanship and grandeur which epitomised by the Zeus at Olympia. During the second and first centuries B.C.E., ancient recorders started to compile lists of must-visit monuments in the Mediterranean.
The massive sculpture of Zeus at Olympia was among the seven ancient wonders of the world as documented by writers such as Antipater of Sidon, Herodotus and Philo of Byzantium.
The popularity of the statue of Zeus persisted well into the age of the Romans, however, Christianity spreading its wings in the fourth century C.E. became the most significant danger to the survival of the statue.
Roman emperor Theodosius I prohibited all pagan cults in 391 C.E, summoning all ancient sanctuaries to be abandoned—including Olympia. He also outlawed the Olympic Games, as it was a polytheistic festival in honour of the Olympians. The sanctuary at Olympia descended into disuse and ultimately into neglect.
The statue of Zeus, nevertheless, encountered another fate. A eunuch in Theodosius II’s court moved the statue to Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), the seat of the Eastern Roman Empire where it was preserved in the exhibition of “pagan antiquities” in the Palace of Lausus.
From there, the fate of the statue remains unknown. Inconsistent reports say it was obliterated by fire or misplaced during an earthquake. Ultimately towards the end of the fifth century, the statue of Zeus vanished from historical record after 800 years of its creation.
However, Phidias’s wondrous sculpture left behind a legacy that has been emulated and fascinated sculptors for centuries to come.
