In six pages this report examines this 40 foot statue in terms of its significance, symbolism, and also discusses its sculptor Phidias. Five sources are cited in the bibliography.
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subject Athena, goddess of wisdom and protectress of Athens. Greek art of this period was perceived, and then reflected, the human ideal. It was a culture that created
and collected objects as art, and then used that art for self-expression and social understanding (Cole 5). Phidias Scholars claim Phidias (c. 500-c. 432 ) as one of the greatest
sculptors of Greece. We have no originals left of his work, but rather several Roman copies. Romans had no difficulty carting off bits and pieces of the Greek
art world, whether as trophy material, or that they really did appreciate the ideal that it represented. What does remain of Phidias work, besides the copies that were wither
plundered or treasured, were descriptions of his work from writers of the period. His greatest achievements were the Athena Parthenos at Athens and the Zeus in the temple of
Olympia, both colossal figures of amazing workmanship (draperies of beaten gold, flesh parts covered with ivory). The Athena (dedicated in the Parthenon c. 447-439 B.C.) goddess of wisdom and protectress
of Athens, was the citys chief treasure. It was destroyed in antiquity, but several copies are preserved (National Museum of Antiquities, Athens). It is difficult for a modern
viewer to imagine what it must have felt like to stand in the presence of such a work. How would it feel to look up to a religious figure
that was four stories tall. It would either leave the viewer with a great sense of awe, a tremendous feeling of protection, or some combination of both. The Zeus
(c. 435B.C.), counted as one of the Seven Wonders of the World, was a majestic bearded figure seated upon a magnificently ornamented throne and wearing a mantle strewn with sculptured