Contributions in History and Sculpting in ancient Greece:
Herodotus and Thucydides:
So far in our class we have read the accounts of two ancient historians: Thucydides and
Herodotus. Both discuss wars – Herodotus’ The Histories covers the Persian War, while
Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War covers its namesake. However, this is where their
similarities end. The two works differ significantly in the topics discussed, narrative style, and
chronology.
Herodotus’ narrative touches on a variety of disciplines. Not only does he touch on history, but
also anthropology and natural science. Each time he begins to discuss a particular historical
group, he provides his readers with a detailed profile of the group’s appearance, diet, religion,
and daily life. When he describes a place, for example Egypt in book two, he includes
descriptions of the land and the animals found within it. The Histories does not revolve only
around the Persian War – Herodotus includes any and all information he finds relevant or
interesting, often adding his own personal opinions. Thucydides, on the other hand, chooses to
focus specifically on the Peloponnesian War. He names his chapters and never strays off the
proposed topic. He provides speeches and some descriptions of people and land, but only as it
relates to war efforts. His information is all factual – he never speaks in first person to declare his
own hypotheses.
Stylistically, Herodotus seems to be the more casual of the two historians. He frequently uses the
first person and verbs such as “think” and “suppose,” thus injecting his personality into his
writing. He also describes private dialogue that he could never have witnessed, which points to
creative invention. In terms of chronology, his writing jumps forward and backwards in time,
and sometimes he describes two events happening at the same time but in completely different
locations. In contrast, Thucydides is more similar to contemporary historians. His writing
features a matter-of-fact style and he presents a chronological string of information without
attempting to prove a thesis or display his opinions.
Although Herodotus’ and Thucydides’ approaches to the discipline of history differ dramatically,
they are among the first historians and contributed to a subject still practiced today.
Phidias:
Phidias was an Athenian sculptor, the son of Charmides, and is generally acknowledged as the
greatest ancient Greek sculptor and instigator of the classical style of the 5th and 4th centuries
BC. Although few facts are known about his life, it is believed he lived from around 490 until 430
BC. No originals of his work exist, but his recognition as a renowned sculptor has been
guaranteed due to the praise of ancient writers, as well as the influence his sculptures had on
the development of the art. He gained most of his fame for his two enormous chryselephantine
(gold and ivory) sculptures: One of Athena in the Parthenon, and the other of Zeus at Olympia.
These statues had such a profound impact that they determined all subsequent conceptions of
Athena and Zeus.
Various people have been rumoured to be responsible for his training: Hegias of Athens,
Agelades of Argos and the painter Polygnotus of Thasos. We know of two of Phidias' own
pupils, noted by Pausanias, who were also his 'eromenoi' (younger boys taken as lovers by
older men). The first, Agoracritus, went on to produce the sculpture of Nemesis at Rhamnus.
The second, Pantarkes of Elis, won the boy's wrestling at Olympia in 436 B.C and seems to
have been greatly admired by Phidias. This is confirmed by Pausanias' report that the boy was
used by Phidias as a model for one of the figures that decorated his great statue of Zeus at
Olympia. The piece was in the form of a triumphant athlete that stood at
the base of the statue. Clement of Alexandria also writes that Phidias
carved the words 'Kalos Pantarkes'('Pantarkes is beautiful') onto Zeus'
little finger.
Phidias is known to have been closely connected with Pericles, as his
friend and also as his adviser. When Pericles rose to power in 449 B.C.
he set out to beautify Athens once more after the victory over Persia.
Phidias was placed in charge of artistic activities as the superintendent of public works. He was
commissioned to build the major statues for the city, and was paid by Pericles with money from
the Delian League. It is generally believed that Phidias directed and supervised the construction
of the Parthenon, as well as designing the sculptural decoration, of which the surviving pieces
can be found in the British museum (the Elgin Marbles). The marble blocks that were to be used
for the pediment statues of the building date from 434 BC, which is probably after Phidias'
death. Therefore it is a possibility that much of the work was carried out by assistants or pupils,
such as Agoracritus. Interestingly though, the mathematical golden ratio is represented by the
Greek letter 'phi', taken from Phidias' name. This is because Phidias employed the ratio in
making the Parthenon sculptures, which perfectly exhibit the proportions of the golden ratio.
There are varying accounts of Phidias' death, but it is generally acknowledged that he became
the target of Pericles' political enemies, due to his close connection with him. Targetting Phidias
was an attempt to harm Pericles' status. They first accused him of stealing gold from the Athena
Parthenos in 432 BC, however Phidias was able to prove his innocence. They then charged him
with impiety, based on the fact that he had included portraits of Pericles and himself in the
decorations of Athena's shield. It was formerly believed that Phidias died in prison shortly after
this, however it is now more likely that he was exiled to Elis were he lived out the rest of his
days.
Phidias' colossal statue of Athena was housed in the Parthenon, known as the Athena
Parthenos and recognised as the symbol of Athens, dating from 447 - 439 BC. As the original is
lost, we form a general idea of the statue from Roman copies, as well as its representation on
coins and gems. The chryselephantine statue stood 38 feet high, depicting the goddess
standing upright with a spear in her left hand and a winged Nike (goddess of victory) in her right
hand. She wore a helmet and a tunic covered by her characteristic snaked aegis, with an ornate
shield and a serpent (representing Erichthonius) by her side. Her chiton (tunic) is fixed at the
waist by two entwined serpents. In the middle of her helmet a sphinx is depicted, with a griffin
shown in relief on either side. Her hair falls down in front of her breastplate, which bears a
picture of Medusa's head in ivory. The flesh of her arms and face were also carved of ivory; the
drapery made of beaten sheets of gold. This meant that the statue actually made up a great
deal of the Athenian treasury, and in 296 BC Lachares replaced the gold with bronze in order to
pay his army. Several ancient copies survive, the most notable being the Varvakeion Athena
from 130 AD and the uncompleted Lenormant Athena; both are now in the National
Archaeological Museum in Athens.
Phidias' second work on the same scale as the Athena Parthenos, was his gigantic statue of
Zeus for the temple in Olympia. Dating from around 435 BC, the statue was counted as one of
the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It depicted Zeus seated on an huge throne, the back
of which rose above his head, making the statue 42 feet high, occupying the full height of the
temple. All that survives to give us an idea of what the sculpture looked like, are some small
engraved coins from Elis, which show the composition of the figure and the rendering of the
head. Zeus was bearded and wearing a cloak that was covered in sculpted decorations. In his
right hand he held a Nike, and in his left was a sceptre with an eagle on top. Like the Athena
Parthenos, the piece was chryselephantine, with ivory flesh and gold drapery. In 1958 a
workshop was excavated at Olympia that is believed to have been where Phidias made his
Zeus, on account of a drinking cup found there inscribed with the words 'I belong to Phidias'.
Some tools and terracotta moulds were discovered which establish that gold was hammered
into the moulds and then further decorated with glass and gems.
Other works that we know of by Phidias include two other statues of Athena for
the Acropolis. The first, the Athena Promachos, was 30 feet high and therefore
the tallest Athenian sculpture before Phidias went on to build the Athena
Parthenos. The second was the Lemnian Athena, dedicated by colonists who
were sent from Athens to Lemnos. There were also two further chryselephantine
sculptures: an Athena for Pellene and an Aphrodite for Elis.