Colosses of Rhoades
Where was it created?
• This famous statue was located in Mandraki Port, Greece.
However, the Colossus of Rhodes had a short existence, it was
knocked down by an earthquake.
In the present
When it was created?
• The Colossus of Rhodes was a monumental
statue that was built in 208 BC. It is
considered one of the Seven Wonders of
the Ancient World. The sculptor Cares de
Lindos was chosen to raise a huge statue,
which was financed by the sale of siege
equipment abandoned by Demetrius's army.
How and when it is destroyed?
• An earthquake knocked it down in the year 226 BC, before the end
of the century that had seen it born, and although the king of Egypt
Ptolemy III Evérgetes offered a lot of money and workers to raise it
again, the Rhodians did not dare to do it due to an oracle that
advised against it.
Where are the remains of the
Colossus of Rhodes?
• Today, there are no remains of the Colossus, only the port where it
was located. After the earthquake, the broken pieces of the bronze
Colossus remained there for almost 800 years.
Reason why it was done
• The statue of the Colossus of Rhodes was ordered to be erected to
celebrate the victory of the Rhodians against the siege of the
Diadochi, aligned with Ptolemy I. They chose to honor Helios
because they considered him the protector god of the city.
Was it really as they said?
• The Colossus of Rhodes was a colossal statue between
30 and 40 meters high and possibly made of wood and
bronze that took fifteen years to complete. This statue
represented the god Helios, the god of the sun and light.
He was represented as a large human figure holding a
large torch in his hand.
Why did they call him Colossus?
• The word colossus comes from the Latin colossus and this from the
Greek κολοσσός (kolossos = giant statue) which was how the
Greeks called the statues of Egypt and later they called one that
they built in Rhodes.
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