The heritage of mankind has preserved magnificent creations of art. Many architectural masterpieces, paintings, works of literature and music still delight modern people. They can be seen at exhibitions, in museums, in private collections. Some of the nation’s treasures are still underground or locked in palaces and castles.
But it turns out that history knows works that you will never see again. Most often, people learn about them from other works. For example, Athena Parthenos became known only through copies and descriptions. At the moment, genuine sculpture does not exist. But the beauty of the description still keeps this work of Phidias in the memory of modern people.
In honor of whom?
It is not difficult to guess who Phidius had in mind. Athena Parthenos is the embodiment of the same ancient Greek goddess, who at one time became famous thanks to her mind and wisdom. Athena was the most revered goddess of ancient Greece. She was one of the greatest masters of Olympus. In addition to being called the goddess of war, Athena is considered to be involved in knowledge, art, crafts, and is also called the patroness of cities and states.
What did it look like?
Before finding out what the statue was, Athena Parthenos must appear before us in true guise. Perhaps she remains for many the most expressive character in ancient Greece. It is she who is considered the most unusual and memorable. This is due to the fact that no matter who depicts Athena, she always has the attributes of a man with him: armor, weapons and a shield. Also, next to the goddess, one could always notice sacred animals.
Most often, Athena is a blond-haired and gray-eyed woman. Homer did consider her a "scoop." Perhaps this comparison is due to the fact that nearby you often could see an owl, a symbol of wisdom. It doesn’t matter where we get acquainted with Athena, whether in poems, or in prose, or on canvas, the creators always try to highlight her big eyes.
The main attributes of Pallas is still a helmet that had a high crest, and aegis, or shield, decorated with the head of the gorgon of Medusa. Also nearby, in particular in the paintings, you can see the olive, which was considered a sacred tree, an owl and a snake - two symbols of wisdom. With Athena more than once met and Nick - the winged goddess.
Author
Many dreamed of preserving the Athena Parthenos statue in the history of mankind. The sculptor Phidias forever in the minds of people remained the creator of the great goddess. The creator lived in the 400s BC. He was a friend of Pericles and was considered the greatest artist of the period of the great classic.
During his short career, he created a huge number of works. Their main character has always been Athena. In addition to the one that later fit in the Parthenon, there was a sculpture of the goddess on the Acropolis of Athens. Her Phidias created in honor of the victory over the Persians. It was huge and served as a kind of beacon for sailors.
Athena Lemnia also has not survived to the present, but is known about it thanks to copies. This statue was created specifically for the inhabitants of the island of Lemnos, hence the name. Two more sculptures representing the goddess of war are also known. One was in the Plateaus, and the other in Achaea.
Phidias is also the author of one of the seven wonders of the Ancient World. It is a sculpture of Zeus at Olympia. This statue was the only one that was located on mainland Europe. It was made of marble, and in size surpassed any temple of that time.
Sculpture
As you know, the sculpture of Athena Parthenos was in the Parthenon. This temple was built as a home for the goddess between 447 and 432 years BC. The statue was made of ivory and gold. It was created in order to glorify success in the Persian wars.
Despite the fact that Athena Parthenos has long ceased to exist, to this day it remains an invisible symbol of the great city. Little is known of the disappearance of the sculpture. Historical facts lead us to Constantinople, where the statue may have been transported. It was here that they could destroy and plunder it. Copies, sculptural details and descriptions of Plutarch and Pausanias allow to restore the original appearance.
All the most expensive
Now it is difficult to understand whether Athena was named after the Parthenon temple, or whether everything was exactly the opposite. Now we can say that the Parthenos means "virgin, " and the Parthenon means "virgin's house."
The temple itself was no less magnificent. But the statue of Athena Parthenos is still considered to be the main decoration of the building. Myths and legends say that the temple was originally built so that this sculpture could fit there. Perhaps when the Parthenon was erected, they already understood that Phidias would put something similar to the sculpture of Athena Promachos there.
The most accurate description of the statue was given by Pliny. He claimed that the creation turned out to be about 12 meters high (26 cubits). For its manufacture, ivory and gold were taken. The first was used by Phidias to create parts of the body of the goddess, and the rest was all made of gold.
It was also said that gold could be easily removed in case of financial difficulties. For other jewelry, copper, glass, silver and precious stones were used. As a result, Phidias created a sculpture, the cost of which was many times higher than the cost of the entire Parthenon temple.
It is known that the statue occupied a huge pedestal 4-8 meters high. It was located closer to the east door and was surrounded by columns. In front of the sculpture was a large reservoir of water, which in modern terms can be called a pool. This was done so that the hall was wet all the time, and the ivory was preserved under these conditions.
Jewelry
Very majestic and warlike, Phydius turned Athena Parthenos. The description of the details makes it clear how unique this sculptural composition was. From the copies it became clear that in one hand the goddess held a statue of Nicky, which, incidentally, had a height of 2 meters, but against the backdrop of the grandeur of the main sculpture looked very miniature. Athena held a shield in her other hand.
That he is the dispute of that time. His most often tried to copy the creators of the whole world. Pliny claimed that on the shield, Phidias depicted the battle of Theseus and the Amazons. Also here you could find the battle of the giants with the gods. There was also an image of the gorgon of Medusa. Perhaps some other interesting characters.
The helmet of Athena Parthenos seemed no less attractive. He had a sphinx in the middle and two griffins with Pegasus wings. It is also known that a snake was at the feet of the goddess. Some claim that Phidias placed the reptile on the chest of the patron saint. This snake was given to the goddess Zeus. Shoes adorned the centauromachia.
Invisible details
Of course, what invisible details of the sculpture can be discussed when no one has seen the sculpture of his contemporaries? Athena Parthenos is full of secrets and mysteries. There is a statement that on the shield of the goddess Phidias placed his portrait and image of his friend Pericles. Presumably he veiled everything under Daedalus and Theseus.
Also, many contemporaries believe that Phidias was fond of boys. His lover was a young Pantark, who became the winner in the fight at the Olympics. The young man was so dear to the sculptor that the inscription “Beautiful Pantark” was carved on one of the statues. Perhaps it was on the finger of Athena Parthenos that this recognition flaunted. Although there is no reliable data on this. Perhaps the inscription was on a statue of Zeus, or on a sculpture of Aphrodite of Urania.
The victims
As mentioned earlier, Phidias did much to make Athena fit perfectly into the Parthenon. If the statue of Zeus rested its head against the ceiling and it seemed that if the thunderer stood up, he would break through the building, then the goddess looked harmoniously in the architectural space.
The fact is that Phidias more than once communicated with Iktin, the builder, so that he would slightly depart from the original plan and, in general, the style of the Dorian temple. The sculptor required more space inside. As a result, we see not 6 classical columns, but eight. In addition, they are located not only on the sides of the statue, but also behind it. Athena appeared to fit into the architectural frame.
Chronology
It turned out to be difficult to determine the future fate of creation. It is also not known where the creation of Phidias Athena Parthenos died. Its history begins around 447 BC. e., when the sculptor received the order and set to work. After 9 years, the statue was installed in the temple.
After a couple of years, the first conflict occurs. Phidias is substituted by enemies and envious people, after which he has to make excuses in the name of purifying his conscience. For more than a century, nothing was known about the fate of the statue. But in 296 BC. e. one commander removed the gold from the sculpture to pay his debts. Then the metal had to be replaced with bronze.
More than a century later, Athena Parthenos suffered a fire. But they were able to restore it. The following information appears already in the 5th century AD. It is known that the next fire in the temple again torments creation. In the 10th century AD e. the masterpiece was in Constantinople. What happened next is unknown.
Fate rock
We have already briefly mentioned the conflicts that affected Phidias. It was Athena Parthenos who became a harbinger of death for him. The creator was a good friend and adviser to Pericles. He helped him with the reconstruction of the Acropolis. He was also certainly talented. Therefore, enemies and envious people could not pass by.
He first encountered them when he was accused of stealing gold from a goddess’s cloak. Phidias had nothing to hide. It was ordered to remove the gold from the base and weigh. We did not find any shortcomings.
But the following accusations ended in failure. Enemies have been looking for something to complain about. The last straw was the charge of insulting the deity. Many knew that Phidias tried to display himself and Pericles on the shield of Athena Parthenos. The sculptors were thrown into prison. It was here that his death came. The only thing that remains a mystery to historians is that he died of longing or poison.
Glory
Among all the works of Phidias, Athena Parthenos is considered the most famous. Its description and history is so vivid that we know about this creation after millennia. The glory of the sculpture swept through the years. Contemporaries of Phidias, as well as later writers, wrote about it more than once. It is known that even Socrates referred to Athena for the interpretation of the concept of beauty.
The greatness of the work is also indicated by the number of copies that have been preserved to this day. The most accurate and bright remains the sculpture "Athena Varvakion". It is located in the National Museum of Athens. The second similar copy was posted right there under the name Athena Lenormand.
Gorgon Medusa, which was placed on the shield, was also copied more than once. The most famous remains a copy of the head of Medusa Rondanini. Now this sculpture is located in Munich, in Glyptotek.
More than once, artists have tried to copy the shield of the original. One of them is kept in the British Museum and is called the “Strangford Shield”. Similar is also in the Louvre.
