Zeus A Study In Ancient Religion

Detailing the mythology behind the Greek god Zeus, this volume also includes information about the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.?Sculpted in 432 BC by Greek artist Phidias, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia is one of the most recognized Ancient Wonders. Nearly 40 feet (12 meters) tall, the statue occupied half of the width of the temple where it sat. Ancient Greek geographer Strabo once noted in the first century BC that "if Zeus were to stand up, he would unroof the temple."?Made of ivory and gold-plated bronze, the statue sat in an intricate throne of cedar inlaid with ivory, gold, ebony and precious gems. In Zeus??right hand, he held a small statue of the goddess of victory, Nike. In his left hand, there was a scepter with an eagle perched on top.?It is believed that the Roman Emperor Caligula was the cause of the statue?s destruction. According to Roman historian Suetonius, Caligula gave orders that statues of gods that were especially famous, including that of Zeus at Olympia, were to be brought from Greece in order to have their heads removed and a marble head of Caligula put in their place. According to legend, just as workers were moving stones to disassemble the Statue of Zeus, there was a loud moment of laughter, followed by the collapsing of scaffolding and the structure, killing some workers and leaving others to flee for their lives.?Until recently, historians and archaeologists debated the time period in which the statue was built. The recent discovery of Phidias??workshop in the 1950s confirms that the temple was completed around the third quarter of the fifth century BC. Today, archaeologists continue to study the techniques Phidias used to construct the temple and the statue, and admirers of Ancient Greece admire the statue?s place on the Ancient Wonders list.

This monumental work explores the classical conception of Zeus as the god of earthquakes, clouds, wind, dew, rain and meteorites.

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Excerpt from Zeus, a Study in Ancient Religion, Vol. 1: Zeus, God of the Bright Sky Chrysostomos in a memorable sentence declared Zeus to be 'the giver of all good things, the Father, the Saviour, the Keeper of mankind.' On the lower levels and slopes of this splendid spiritual ascent the Greeks found themselves at one with the. Beliefs of many surrounding peoples, so that a fusion of the Hellenic Zeus with this or that barbaric counterpart often came about. On the higher ground of philosophy and poetry they joined hands with a later age and pressed on towards our own conceptions of Deity. I have therefore felt bound to take into account not only the numerous adaptations of Levantine syncretism but also sundry points of contact between Hellenism and Christianity. It is obvious that the limits of such an enquiry are to a certain extent arbitrary. I shall expect to be told by some that I have gone too far afield, by others that I have failed to note many side-lights from adjacent regions. Very possibly both criticisms are true. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.