

HistoryĪfter Alexander’s death, his generals fought for the control of the empire. The Colossus would probably have been in an upright position with its legs together. But, considering the colossus’s height and the wide of the harbor mouth, this image is almost impossible this posture was a figment of medieval imaginations based on texts, like “over land and sea”. It has been believed that the statue stood in front of the Mandraki harbor straddling its entrance. There is a misconception about the appearance of the Colossus. Is said that The Colossus of Rhode was 110 feet (33 m) height when was completed. Nevertheless, another theory proposes that the upper parts were built using towers and scaffolding.

The higher parts were constructed using an earth ramp which was built around the statue this ramp was removed when the colossus was finished. The structure was gradually erected and the bronze form was fortified with an iron and stone framework.
COLOSSUS STATUE SKIN
The bronze skin parts were made by workers using casts, later individual plates of bronze were joined together by through holes made during the molding to form a series of rings. The feet of the statue were carved in stone and later they were covered with bronze plates riveted. The statue’s base was made of white marble the pedestal was 50 feet height (approximately 15 meters). The statue would have been located at the entrance of the harbor of the island of Rhodes. Is believed that this statue was approximately as large as the Statue of Liberty in New York, whose creator the French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi was inspired by the ancient wonder of the world. One of the examples of this technology was the Colossus of Rhodes. It was a giant statue of bronze, constructed in the III century BC as the representation of the god Helios.Īccording to the legend, the Island of Rhodes was famous for its technology advances, mainly war machines. It was reported that it took approximately 900 camels to carry away all the scrap metal.This wonder of the ancient World was located in the Greek Island of Rhodes. The Arabs dismantled what was left of the Colossus and sold it as scrap metal. The Rhodians were conquered by the Arabs in the 7th century A.D. They believed that Helios himself was angered by the statue and caused the earthquake that destroyed it. Ptolemy III, the king of Egypt offered to pay for the Colossus' reconstruction. The Colossus of Rhodes was destroyed in an earthquake in 226 BC, but pieces of the statue lay where it fell for centuries afterwards. His teacher was Lysippus, a sculptor who had previously created a 60 foot tall statue of Zeus. It would also have blocked the harbour when it fell.Ĭharles of Lindos was the architect of the Colossus of Rhodes. If the statue had been built with Helios' legs straddling the harbour, the harbour would have had to be closed for the 12 years of construction. Others have discounted this theory and believe that he stood in a more Greek Pose. Some historians believe that Helios was built with one foot on either side of the harbour. Over this they used brass plates to create the skin and outer structure of Helios. The statue was built with an iron frame work. Some accounts suggest he wore a crown and that this hand was up in the air. Some historians believe that the statue depicted Helios as either being nude or semi-nude with a robe. It was written by Emma Lazarus and includes the following reference to the Colossus of Rhodes: ‘Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame.'īoth the Colossus of Rhodes and the Statue of Liberty were built as symbols to freedom.īoth the Colossus of Rhodes and the Statue of Liberty were built in busy harbours.Ĭonstruction of the Colossus of Rhodes took 12 years to complete. There is a plaque inside the pedestal of Statue of Liberty that is inscribed with a sonnet called ‘The New Colossus'. The Colossus of Rhodes stood on a 50 foot high white marble pedestal. The Colossus of Rhodes was approximately 98.4 feet tall and Statue of Liberty stands at 111 feet, 6 inches, from her heel to the top her head. The Statue of Liberty has been referred to as the ‘Modern Colossus'. The Rhodians also used brass and iron from the equipment left behind to build the statue. The Rhodians sold the equipment and used the money to build the Colossus of Rhodes. When the ruler of Cyprus was defeated they left behind much of their equipment. It only stood for 56 years until it was destroyed by an earthquake in 226 BC. At 98.4 feet high, the Colossus of Rhodes was one of the tallest statues of the ancient world. The statue was a depiction of the Greek Titan Helios and was meant to celebrate their victory over the ruler of Cyprus in 305 BC. The Colossus of Rhodes is a statue that was built on the Greek island of Rhodes between 292 and 280 BC.
