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The Peloponnesian War

The Peloponnesian War, one of the most significant events in ancient Greek history, enveloped the city-states of the ancient Greek world, forever changing the region.

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Ancient Civilizations, Social Studies

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Peloponnesian War

This copper engraving by Matthaus Merian illustration depicts the Athenian naval defeat near Corinth over the Corinthian and Spartan fleet around 430 B.C.E.

Photograph by akg-images/Newscom

The Peloponnesian War was a war fought in ancient Greece between Athens and Sparta—the two most powerful city-states in ancient Greece at the time (431 to 405 B.C.E.). This war shifted power from Athens to Sparta, making Sparta the most powerful city-state in the region. The war featured two periods of combat separated by a six-year truce.

Athens and Sparta had previously quarreled in the decades prior to the war. One of Sparta’s allies, Corinth, had directly engaged the Athenian army. As a Spartan ally, Corinth resumed hostilities toward Athens when Athens threatened Corinth’s interests in the region surrounding Corcyra. This eventually drew Sparta into the conflict. The Spartan army began by raiding lands within an Athenian allied territory, particularly a region near Athens called Attica. The Athenians had built walls stretching from their seaport to the city of Athens. The walls helped protect Athens from direct assault, and its leader, Pericles, urged Athens not to engage in direct land battles with the Spartans. Instead, the Athenians used their navy to deliver troops into the Spartan territory to conduct raids on settlements.

After years of open warfare, Sparta offered peace and Athens accepted. The agreement was made official with the signing of the Peace of Nicias. The treaty stated that Athens and Sparta would defend each other for the next 50 years. However, the treaty only lasted six.

Hostilities resumed between Athens and Sparta with an assault launched by the Athenians at Sicily. Sparta decided to retaliate. Learning from its past experiences with the Athenian navy, they established a fleet of warships. It would be another decade of warfare before the Spartan general Lysander defeated the Athenian fleet at Aegospotami. This defeat led to Athenian surrender. As a result, the Peloponnesian War was concluded. Simultaneous to the end of this conflict came the end of the golden age of ancient Greece.

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The Peloponnesian War | National Geographic Society

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The Peloponnesian War, one of the most significant events in ancient Greek history, enveloped the city-states of the ancient Greek world, forever changing the region.

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Statue of Zeus, at Olympia, Greece, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The statue was one of two masterpieces by the Greek sculptor Phidias (the other being the statue of Athena in the Parthenon) and was placed in the huge Temple of Zeus at Olympia in western Greece. The statue, almost 12 m (40 feet) high and plated with gold and ivory, represented the god sitting on an elaborate cedarwood throne ornamented with ebony, ivory, gold, and precious stones. On his outstretched right hand was a statue of Nike (Victory), and in the god's left hand was a sceptre on which an eagle was perched. The statue, which took eight years to construct, was noted for the divine majesty and goodness it expressed. The discovery in the 1950s of the remains of Phidias' workshop at Olympia confirmed the statue's date of about 430 bce. The temple was destroyed in 426 ce, and the statue, of which no accurate copies survive, may have been destroyed then or in a fire at Constantinople (now Istanbul) about 50 years later.

Amy Tikkanen.

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Statue of Zeus | Ancient, Olympia, Temple

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Statue of Zeus, at Olympia, Greece, one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The statue was one of two masterpieces by the Greek sculptor Phidias (the other being the statue of Athena in the Parthenon) and was placed in the huge Temple of Zeus at Olympia in western Greece.

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The monumental statue of Zeus at Olympia in Greece was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Created in the 430s BCE under the supervision of the master Greek sculptor Phidias, the huge ivory and gold statue was bigger even than that of Athena in the Parthenon. Worshipped by pilgrims from across the Mediterranean, the statue inspired countless imitations and defined the standard representation of Zeus in Greek and Roman art in sculpture, on coins, pottery, and gemstones. Lost in later Roman times following its removal to Constantinople, Phidias' masterpiece captivated the ancient world for 1,000 years and was the must-see sight for anyone who attended the ancient Olympic Games.

Phidias, Master sculptor

The master sculptor and architect Phidias (also spelt Pheidias, active c. 465-425 BCE), who had already supervised construction of the Parthenon (447-432 BCE) in Athens and its giant statue of the city's patron goddess Athena, was called on again to produce a similarly monumental sculpture of Zeus. The location was to be Olympia in the western Peloponnese of Greece where a huge brand new temple awaited. It was there that, every four years, the Pan- Hellenic Olympic Games (776 BCE - 393 CE) were dedicated. Olympia was then controlled by the polis ( city-state) of Elis and the sacred site attracted thousands of travellers, pilgrims, and sports fans from across the Mediterranean. The new cult statue and temple to house it would be fine additions, adding prestige to Olympia at a time when there were still rival games held at other sites such as Delphi, Nemea, and Isthmia near Corinth. In addition, a magnificent dedication to Zeus, father of the Olympian gods and supreme deity of the ancient Greek religion, could only be a positive for the Eleans' and indeed all of ancient Greece's spiritual and material well-being.

Phidias was the perfect choice for what would be a challenging project requiring hundreds of craftsmen and several years of work. The master sculptor moved to Olympia, and excavations in the 20th century CE revealed his workshop, which contained a simple red-figure Attic cup or wine jug ( oinochoe) inscribed in Greek Pheidio eim i, "I belong to Phidias". The workshop also contained ivory tools, a small hammer for working gold, and moulds for pieces of a large female statue.

In the 5th century BCE, the sanctuary of Olympia reached its peak of prosperity & a massive Doric 6 x 13 column temple was begun.

The Temple

In the 5th century BCE, the sanctuary of Olympia reached its peak of prosperity and a massive Doric 6 x 13 column temple was begun c. 460 BCE. Completed c. 457 BCE, it was designed by Libon of Elis and it was the biggest in Greece at that time, measuring over 20 metres (65.5 ft) in height, 64.12 x 27.68 m (210 x 91 ft) along its sides with columns 10.53 m (34.5 ft) in height and 2.25 metres (7 ft) in diameter at their base. The pediments of the temple displayed magnificent sculpture: on the east side the mythical chariot race between Pelops and Oinomaos, and on the western pediment a battle scene with centaurs (Centauromachy) with the majestic central figure of Apollo. Metopes from the temple represented the labours of Hercules. Many of these decorative figures sculptures survive today and can be seen at the museum at the archaeological site of Olympia.

The Statue

In the religion of ancient Greece, a temple was considered the dwelling place of a god, as its name naos ('dwelling') suggests. Thus, the statue of the deity inside was far more important than the temple itself. The figure was typically placed in the centre of the building so that when its doors were opened it could look out upon the sacrifices and ceremonies being performed just outside in that god's honour. Whether the worshippers actually believed that the god somehow inhabited the statue is a moot point, but certainly prayers and ritual gestures were directly addressed to it. It is also interesting to note that one of the common names for a statue in Greek was zōon or "living thing", such was the endeavour of the sculptor to capture living matter in unfeeling bronze or marble. Certainly, Phidias' vision was of a statue so large and gleaming in gold that it would be nothing short of an awe-inspiring epiphany to the onlooker, it would provide as close a link as possible between humanity and the divine.

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Phidias' vision was of a statue so large & gleaming in gold that it would be nothing short of an awe-inspiring epiphany.

The statue of mighty Zeus was over 12 m (40 ft) high and represented the god seated on a throne. It was bigger even than Phidias' Athena Parthenos in Athens. The Zeus statue, like Athena, was chryselephantine, that is a combination of gold and ivory over a wooden core, with the god's skin (face, torso, arms and legs) being in ivory and his beard, robes, and staff rendered in brilliant gold, applied in hammered sheets. Fine details were picked out using a wide variety of materials: silver, copper, glass (for the decorative lilies of the god's robes), ebony, enamel, paint, and jewels. The clay moulds discovered in Phidias' workshop for a similar statue suggest that it was first erected there in pieces - the size of the workshop is exactly the same dimensions as the inner cella of the temple - and then reassembled at its final destination. The wooden core could not have been fully sculpted or the moulds would have been unnecessary to shape the outer gold pieces.

The most complete description of the sculpture from ancient sources is to be found in the Description of Greece by the 2nd-century CE Greek geographer and traveller Pausanias:

The god sits on a throne, and he is made of gold and ivory. On his head lies a garland which is a copy of olive shoots. In his right hand he carries a Victory [ Nike], which, like the statue, is of ivory and gold; she wears a ribbon and-on her head-a garland. In the left hand of the god is a sceptre, ornamented with every kind of metal, and the bird sitting on the sceptre is the eagle. The sandals also of the god are of gold, as is likewise his robe. On the robe are embroidered figures of animals and the flowers of the lily. The throne is adorned with gold and with jewels, to say nothing of ebony and ivory. Upon it are painted figures and wrought images. (Book 5, Ch. 11)

Zeus' throne - made using ivory, ebony, and gold, and encrusted with glass and gems - was embellished with relief sculpture depicting a wide range of figures from Greek mythology, many of which were considered the offspring of Zeus. There are the Graces (Charites), the Seasons (Horae), various Nikes, sphinxes, Amazons, and the children of Niobe. The screens between the legs of the throne were painted by Phidias' brother Panaenus (Panainos) and depicted the Labours of Hercules, Achilles with Penthesilea, Hippodamia with Sterope, Salamis, and scenes of Greece. The god rested his feet upon a footstool which was decorated with a battle scene involving Theseus fighting Amazons (Amazonomachy).

The figure of Zeus, throne, and stool, were all placed on a base of black Eleusinian marble which measured 9.93 x 6.25 metres (32.5 x 20.5 ft) along its sides. The base was decorated with scenes of the Birth of Aphrodite. Finally, the base was signed by Phidias with the words "Phidias, son of Charmides, an Athenian, made me".

The statue stood in front of a shallow pool of diluted or pure olive oil (as opposed to water in the case of the Athena Parthenos) which helped keep a moist atmosphere and impede any cracking of the ivory pieces. The reflection of the statue in the pool was a bonus side-effect to add to its aura of other-worldliness. The finished statue was dedicated c. 430 BCE.

Some of the monuments of the ancient world so impressed visitors from far and wide with their beauty, artistic and architectural ambition, and sheer scale that their reputation grew as must-see ( themata) sights for the ancient traveller and pilgrim. Seven such monuments became the original 'bucket list' when ancient writers such as Herodotus, Callimachus of Cyrene, Antipater of Sidon, and Philo of Byzantium compiled shortlists of the most wonderful sights of the ancient world. The great statue of Zeus made it onto the established list of Seven Wonders from the 2nd century BCE, but it was by then already widely known, imitated in sculpture and represented in vase paintings, carved gemstones, and on coinage from the 4th century BCE, notably on the reverse side of the silver tetradrachms of Alexander the Great (336-323 BCE) and the coins of Elis. Roman emperor Hadrian (r. 117-138 CE) was still using the same image on his coins in the 2nd century CE. Besides these surviving representations, there are marble copies of the children of Niobe from the throne of the statue.

The Zeus statue, then, attracted people from across the known world. Individuals and city-states brought offerings to Zeus, which included money, fine statues (including the magnificent Nike of Paionios, c. 424 BCE, and the Hermes of Praxiteles, late 4th century BCE), bronze tripods, shields, helmets, and weapons resulting in Olympia becoming a living museum of Greek art and culture. Many cities also built treasuries - small but impressive buildings to house their offerings and raise the prestige of their city.

It was Roman Emperor Theodosius I (r. 379-395 CE) who, favouring Christianity, decreed that all cult practices, including the Olympic Games, be stopped, and the final Olympics was held in 393 CE after a run of 293 games over more than a millennium. After that time the site and temple fell into disrepair until it was desecrated c. 426 CE following a decree against pagan temples by Theodosius II (r. 402-450 CE) and then completely destroyed by earthquakes in 522 and 551 CE. The ruins were eventually covered in silt brought by the River Alpheus as it slowly changed its course over time.

The statue would not suffer the same fate as the temple, though, as the two were destined to be separated and never reunited. The statue was renovated several times, cracks in the ivory were repaired, and even perhaps supporting columns added under the throne. Roman emperor Caligula (r. 37-41 CE) had audaciously tried to remove the statue and have it brought to Rome, but according to the Roman writer Suetonius (c. 69 - c. 140 CE), the project was abandoned after the giant Zeus mysteriously emitted a roar of laughter and the scaffolding of the workers collapsed. The next indignity was having its gold parts spirited away by Roman Emperor Constantine I (r. 306-337 CE). Finally, the statue of Zeus was removed to Constantinople in 395 CE, then the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, where it and the temple or palace it stood in were destroyed during an earthquake or tsunami in the 5th, or more likely, 6th century CE. An alternative theory, as recorded in the works of the historians Zonaras and Kedron, is that the statue was destroyed by a fire in 475 CE. Whatever the exact causes of its final loss, the surviving descriptions by ancient writers and the tantalising images in other ancient artworks and on coins are all that survive of one of the wonders of the ancient world, the only one that was ever genuinely revered.

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The monumental statue of Zeus at Olympia in Greece was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Created in the 430s BCE under the supervision of the master Greek sculptor Phidias, the huge ivory and gold statue was bigger even than that of Athena in the Parthenon.

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Learn about the statue of Zeus at Olympia, on the Greek peninsula of Peloponnesus Contunico © ZDF Enterprises GmbH, Mainz

The statue of Zeus is known as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It is said to have stood in Olympia, on the Greek peninsula of Peloponnesus. In 800 B.C., the Greeks began holding a sporting event every four years to honor the gods in Olympia. Before entering the arena, the athletes made a sacrifice to Zeus and swore an oath of fairness. Today there is nothing left of the mighty temple that housed the famous statue of Zeus in antiquity. Natural disasters have completely destroyed the once hallowed site. This graphic reproduction nevertheless provides us with a look into the past. The temple, a 20-meter-high columned hall, had a roof made of marble panels. Inside its walls resided the statue of Zeus, acknowledged today as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It was 1766 before an English researcher rediscovered the lost site. Years later, German scientists began excavating sculptures and remnants of the columns, which had been perfectly preserved by a thick layer of mud. But no traces were found of the legendary image of Zeus. According to some sources, the statue of Olympia's ruler was destroyed when Emperor Theodosius II banned the games in 426 and closed the temple. Other sources allege that the statue was dismantled and transported to Constantinople, where it was reportedly burned.

Although the statue was destroyed, a number of sources enable us today to create a precise reconstruction of the 12-meter-high statue of the seated figure. The sculpture's fame had already spread far beyond Greece's borders even in antiquity. It was created in 430 B.C. by the renowned sculptor Phidias, who had previously completed the statue of Athena on the Acropolis. In the hands of the famous sculptor, ivory and gold were formed into a work of art that was revered far and wide for its beauty and aura. The statue of Zeus at Olympia - a world wonder of antiquity.

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Learn about the statue of Zeus at Olympia, on the Greek peninsula of Peloponnesus

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The statue of Zeus is known as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. It is said to have stood in Olympia, on the Greek peninsula of Peloponnesus. In 800 B.C., the Greeks began holding a sporting event every four years to honor the gods in Olympia.

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The statue of Zeus in Olympia was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and the masterpiece of Phidias, antiquity's greatest sculptor. Sadly, the statue was destroyed under unknown circumstances at some point in late antiquity. However, legends and mysteries surround its 1,000-year-old history. Some stories are as strange as they are entertaining, like the one where it foretold the murder of the Roman Emperor Caligula.

The Statue of Zeus: Among the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World

As Alexander the Great drew his final breath in 323 BCE, he left a vast empire behind him. Alexander's sword had created a world of unprecedented cultural interactions, as the Hellenic culture spread from Greece to the oasis of Siwa and from there to the Indus river.

Greek-speaking travelers of the ensuing centuries would go on to write travel diaries and share their experiences and instructions. Some of them even compiled lists of must-see monuments which they called theamata (sights) and later thaumata (wonders). These lists changed depending on the traveler and their experiences. The list of monuments that we recognize today as the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World belongs to Antipater of Sidon (c. 100 BCE) and Philo of Byzantium (2nd century BCE). Among the most famous of the wonders was the statue of Zeus at Olympia, which was probably lost at some point in late antiquity, but more on that later.

Phidias: The Divine Sculptor

For the ancient Greeks, there was no greater sculptor than Phidias (beginning of the 5th century - c. 430 BCE). He was the one who oversaw the construction program of the Athenian Acropolis and created the Parthenon's large chryselephantine (gold and ivory) statue of Athena. In fact, he was the first sculptor ever to dare represent the gods with gold and ivory.

Right after finishing Athena's statue, Phidias was blamed for embezzlement by the enemies of his friend and prominent Athenian statesman Pericles. In the end, Phidias was relieved of the charges, after proving that he used the right amount of gold on the statue. Still, he did not manage to fend off the second wave of accusations. Apparently, he had depicted himself and Pericles on the shield of the goddess, which was a great hubris. This time, Phidias had to leave Athens to save himself.

It was probably this misfortune that brought the sculptor to the sanctuary of Zeus in Olympia. The sanctuary was under the protection of the city of Elis. Seeing the opportunity, the Elians asked Phidias to create a statue of Zeus like no other, and so he did.

There is also another version, told by Plutarch, in which Phidias first visits Olympia to make the statue of Zeus and then goes to Athens, where he dies in prison. However, both versions agree on one thing: Phidias visited Olympia and created a unique image of Zeus.

The sculpture was larger than the one he had made in Athens. It was also more majestic. There was a magnetism that made it famous almost instantly. Centuries later, Pliny the Elder would write that this was a work "which no one ever equaled". If you visit Olympia today, you can even see the workshop where the sculptor built the statue.

Pausanias saw the 12m tall statue with his own eyes in the 2nd century CE and wrote about it in detail. His description is valuable:

The god sits on a throne, and he is made of gold and ivory. On his head lies a garland which is a copy of olive shoots. In his right hand he carries a Victory, which, like the statue, is of ivory and gold; she wears a ribbon and-on her head-a garland. In the left hand of the god is a scepter, ornamented with every kind of metal, and the bird sitting on the scepter is the eagle. The sandals also of the god are of gold, as is likewise his robe. On the robe are embroidered figures of animals and the flowers of the lily.

However, what appears to have impressed Pausanias more, is Zeus' throne. He goes on to describe it in extreme detail, so I am only quoting part of the description here:

"...The throne is adorned with gold and with jewels, to say nothing of ebony and ivory. Upon it are painted figures and wrought images. There are four Victories, represented as dancing women, one at each foot of the throne, and two others at the base of each foot. On each of the two front feet are set Theban children ravished by sphinxes, while under the sphinxes Apollo and Artemis are shooting down the children of Niobe..."

In front of the throne, the Elians kept a pool filled with oil. The oil protected the statue from the moisture of Olympia and helped preserve it to a good condition. Likewise, on the Acropolis of Athens, where the climate was dry, the Athenians used a pool of water to preserve the chryselephantine statue of Athena.

The Greek painter Panaenus, Phidias' nephew, assisted in the creation of the statue "with respect to the colours with which it was ornamented, and particularly the drapery" (Strabo, Geography VIII.3.30). He also painted the panels that covered the front of the statue's base.

What Did the Statue of Zeus Look Like?

According to legend, when someone asked Phidias what inspired him to make Zeus' statue, the sculptor replied with the following verse from Homer's Iliad (I.528-530):

"He said, and nodded with his shadowy brows;

Wav'd on th' immortal head th' ambrosial locks,

And all Olympus trembled at his nod."

Even with Pausanias' testimony and the words that inspired the sculptor, it is still not easy to picture how the statue would have looked. Luckily for us, its image appears on ancient Greek and Greco-Roman coins, gem and stone engravings, vase paintings, and sculptures.

Interestingly, the statue served as a reference for later depictions of Zeus as an old fatherly figure with a beard and long hair. We can find traces of this tradition in later Christian depictions of the Christ Pantocrator. It is kind of soothing to think that the same Christians who ferociously destroyed all things pagan, in a way, preserved the old tradition through their art.

Was Phidias' Lover Depicted on the Statue?

Pausanias shares some gossip relating to the statue. At the feet of the throne, there were four rods, each with sculpted figures. One of these figures, a young boy placing a ribbon of victory on his head, was said to have been sculpted in the image of Pantarces, who was said to have been the lover of Phidias. Clement of Alexandria (c. 150-215 CE) even claims that Phidias had written the phrase "Pantarkes kalos" (Pantarkes is beautiful/good) on Zeus' finger! This directly implied that the sculptor maintained an erotic relationship with Pantarces.

Legends About the Statue

For the ancients, the statue of Zeus was more than just a statue, more than one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. For them, it was a version of the god on earth. It is no coincidence that Pausanias referred to the statue as "ὁ θεὸς" (the god) and not as "the statue" or "the image". This was not an uncommon thing in ancient Greece and Rome. In fact, it was the canon. Sculptures of gods were thought to mediate between the realm of gods and humans. Talking to a statue of Artemis, for example, was a way to communicate with the goddess. However, the statue of Zeus had moved beyond that. It was thought to have captured the very essence of the divine. This belief was strengthened by legends such as the one that claimed that when Phidias finished the statue, he asked Zeus if he was satisfied. As a response, thunder fell from the sky and opened a hole in the ground. Zeus approved.

"Nay, the god himself according to legend bore witness to the artistic skill of Pheidias. For when the image was quite finished Pheidias prayed the god to show by a sign whether the work was to his liking. Immediately, runs the legend, a thunderbolt fell on that part of the floor where down to the present day the bronze jar stood to cover the place."

Livy relates that when the Roman general Aemilius Paulus visited Olympia, he saw the statue and "was stirred to the quick as he gazed on what seemed Jupiter's very self".

Dio Chrysostom, the Greek philosopher and orator of the 1st century CE, wrote that if animals could catch a glimpse of the statue, they would willingly submit themselves to a priest to be sacrificed to the god. Moreover, Dio claimed that whoever stood before the statue of Zeus "would forget all the terrors and hardships that fall to our human lot".

Still, some found faults with Phidias' creation. Strabo relates that the statue's size was not proportional to that of the temple. Phidias had presented Zeus seated with his head almost touching the roof. But what would happen if the god decided to leave his temple and rise? Strabo replies: "he would unroof the temple!"

Caligula Wanted to Bring It to Rome

According to the Roman historians Suetonius (Gaius 22.2; 57.1) and Cassius Dio ( 59.28.3), the Roman Emperor Gaius Caesar, also known as Caligula, wanted to transport the statue of Zeus to Rome, and replace its head with a bust of his own.

Suetonius claims that the only reason this did not happen was because of Caligula's assassination. He even writes that while the statue was being prepared to be shipped to Rome, the statue foretold the emperor's death, when it suddenly burst out laughing so loudly that:

"... the scaffold ings collapsed and the workmen took to their heels; and at once a man called Cassius turned up, who declared that he had been bidden in a dream to sacrifice a bull to Jupiter".

Cassius Dio partially agrees with Suetonius. For him, it wasn't the emperor's death that prevented the statue's removal, but the wrath of the god:

"... the ship built to bring it was shattered by thunderbolts, and loud laughter was heard every time that anybody approached as if to take hold of the pedestal; accordingly, after uttering threats against the statue, he set up a new one of himself."

Obviously, these stories have more to do with legend than reality. In these narrations, the statue is clearly illustrated as a monument so holy that the very idea of transporting it is hubris.

What Happened to the Statue of Zeus?

In 391 BCE, Theodosius forbade the cult of the pagan gods and closed all pagan sites. As the Olympic Games were forbidden, Olympia could no longer be the place it once was. In 408 CE, new legislation asked for the removal of cult statues from their temples. The old world was not dying; it was getting destroyed! The statue of Zeus possibly survived this wave of destruction, but no one really knows what happened. Most scholars argue that it was moved to Constantinople, where it was lost sometime during the 5th or the 6th century.

However, thanks to its status as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and the legends that the ancient authors had spread, Phidias' statue remained alive through the art of the subsequent centuries. The statue of Zeus at Olympia changed the way the king of the gods was depicted, ultimately setting a visual precedent that even the Christian God would not fail to follow. In addition, imaginary reconstructions from Van Heemskerck to Quatramere de Quincy and Salvador Dali to Assassin's Creed clearly indicate that the legend of the statue of Zeus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, has remained alive throughout the centuries.

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The Statue of Zeus in Olympia: A Lost Wonder

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The statue of Zeus in Olympia was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and the masterpiece of Phidias, antiquity's greatest sculptor. Sadly, the statue was destroyed under unknown circumstances at some point in late antiquity. However, legends and mysteries surround its 1,000-year-old history.

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Zeus Statue Olympia - Discover Greek Art and the Iconic Statue of Zeus

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Counted among the Seven Wonders of the World, pilgrims from all across the Mediterranean came to worship the statue of Zeus at Olympia, which inspired innumerab

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