Inventory number
Ακρ. 140
Artist
Euenor
Category
Sculpture
Period
Classical Period
Date
480-470 BC
Dimensions
Height: 0.9 m
Material
Marble from Paros and marble from Penteli
Location
Archaic Acropolis Gallery
Statue of Athena with its base, which was found incomplete. The statue was discovered in 1864 in the area of the Sanctuary of Pandion during archaeological excavations for the construction of the old Acropolis Museum. The small column base was found in 1886 near the north wall of the Acropolis while its capital's discovery site in unknown.
The statue misses the head, left arm, right hand and front of left foot. From the base which was reassembled from numerous fragments, the lower part is missing.
The goddess stands with the right leg slightly bent at the knee. In her upraised hand she would have held a spear, while she rested her other hand loosely on her hip. Above her peplos she wears an aegis, with a relief Gorgon head at its centre. Around the aegis' edge thirteen holes have been drilled, where bronze snakes would have been once attached. The aegis' back side preserves traces of red and black colour.
This statue is one of the most important sculptures of the so-called "Severe Style". It is the earliest case, where Athenian artists have begun to revive the peplos, a traditional item of Attic attire which for almost a century had been abandoned in favor of the more graceful Ionic chiton. In addition, this statue constitutes a new type of depicting Athena Promachos: the goddess is still armed, but her attitude seems serene. A number of works of art - the most prominent one being the, lost today, bronze Athena Promachos, crafted by the sculptor Pheidias and set up on the Acropolis- belong to the same type of Athena statues.
The statue's base is in the form of a column of the Doric order with a rounded capital. The plinth where the statue stands was secured in place by means of molten lead, poured into a specially carved slot on top of the column. The inscription perpendicular to the flutes reads: "Angelitos dedicated me. Oh, venerable Athena, may this gift be pleasing to you. Euenor made it".
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