Zeus seated on a throne
Zeus seated on a throne
Published 2018-09-19T12:14:50+00:00
This marble sculpture depicts Zeus seated on the throne with an eagle at his feet.
Zeus is the Olympian god of the sky and the thunder, the king of all other gods and men, and, consequently, the chief figure in Greek mythology. The son of Cronus and Rhea, he is probably most famous for his infidelity to his sister and wife, Hera. Athena, Apollo and Artemis, Hermes, Dionysus, Heracles, Helen of Troy, and the Muses are all children of his numerous erotic affairs. Hephaestus, Hebe, and Ares are his legitimate children.
The Aetos Dios was a giant, golden eagle which served as Zeus' personal messenger and animal companion. According to some, it was once a mortal king named Periphas, whose virtuous rule was so celebrated that he came to be honoured as a god. Zeus, in anger, would have smitten him with a thunderbolt, but Apollon intervened and transformed the king into an eagle and set him beside the throne of Zeus. According to others, Zeus adopted the eagle when it first appeared to him before the Titan War as a sign of good omen.
The sculpture was discovered in Gymnasium of Salamis.
Date published | 19/09/2018 |
Title | Zeus seated on a throne |
Date | 2nd century AD |
Medium | Marble |
Artist | Unknown artist |
Place | Cyprus Archaeological Museum |