The Golden Ratio in Zeus
PHEIDIAS (fl. c. 490-430 BC), Athenian sculptor, the artistic director of the construction of the Parthenon, who created its most important religious images and supervised and probably designed its overall sculptural decoration. It is said of Phidias that he alone had seen the exact image of the gods and that he revealed it to man. He established forever general conceptions of Zeus and Athena.
Little is known about Phidias' life. When Pericles rose to power in 449, he initiated a great building program in Athens and placed Phidias in charge of all artistic undertakings. Among works for which Phidias is famous are three monuments to Athena on the Athenian Acropolis (the Athena Promachos, the Lemnian Athena, and the colossal Athena Parthenos for the Parthenon) and the colossal seated Zeus for the Temple of Zeus at Olympia; none of these survives in the original.
The first of Phidias' monuments to Athena, the bronze Athena Promachos, was one of his earliest works. It was placed on the Athenian Acropolis in about 456. According to the preserved inscription, it measured about 30 feet (9 m) high. At the time, it was the largest statue yet erected in Athens.
The so-called Lemnian Athena was dedicated as an offering by Athenian colonists who were sent to Lemnos between 451 and 448. A head of Athena in Bologna and two statues of Athena in Dresden are thought to be copies, in marble, of Phidias' original work in bronze.
The colossal statue of the Athena Parthenos, which Phidias made for the Parthenon, was completed and dedicated in 438. The original work was made of gold and ivory and stood some 38 feet (12 m) high. The goddess stood erect, wearing a tunic, aegis, and helmet and holding a Nike (goddess of victory) in her extended right hand and a spear in her left. A decorated shield and a serpent were by her side. Several copies have been identified from this description; among them are the Varakion, a Roman copy of about AD 130 (now in the National
Little is known about Phidias' life. When Pericles rose to power in 449, he initiated a great building program in Athens and placed Phidias in charge of all artistic undertakings. Among works for which Phidias is famous are three monuments to Athena on the Athenian Acropolis (the Athena Promachos, the Lemnian Athena, and the colossal Athena Parthenos for the Parthenon) and the colossal seated Zeus for the Temple of Zeus at Olympia; none of these survives in the original.
The first of Phidias' monuments to Athena, the bronze Athena Promachos, was one of his earliest works. It was placed on the Athenian Acropolis in about 456. According to the preserved inscription, it measured about 30 feet (9 m) high. At the time, it was the largest statue yet erected in Athens.
The so-called Lemnian Athena was dedicated as an offering by Athenian colonists who were sent to Lemnos between 451 and 448. A head of Athena in Bologna and two statues of Athena in Dresden are thought to be copies, in marble, of Phidias' original work in bronze.
The colossal statue of the Athena Parthenos, which Phidias made for the Parthenon, was completed and dedicated in 438. The original work was made of gold and ivory and stood some 38 feet (12 m) high. The goddess stood erect, wearing a tunic, aegis, and helmet and holding a Nike (goddess of victory) in her extended right hand and a spear in her left. A decorated shield and a serpent were by her side. Several copies have been identified from this description; among them are the Varakion, a Roman copy of about AD 130 (now in the National