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Collossus of Rhodes, as descrbed in earlier post, was udeniably the most famous and recognised ancient statue that ever existed. Its genesis goes back to the year 292 when the built of the impressive monument began. It was aimed at commemorising the war that quite unexpectedly ended. People of Rhodes held the oppinion that their deliverence had been for the god of sun called Helios. And the statue presents their imagination of this god. They say that the money needed for the build was obtained from selling precious armours that the fleeing army of the enemies of Rhodes left behind while their flee. And it was an overwhelmingly exorbitant sum : the equivalent of nine tonnes of silver! That can be a reason enough to book a flight to Rhodes to go and see the place where once such a piece of art was situated.
The statue of Helios looked towards east and shielded his eyes from the dazzling sunshine.He was totally naked only with a coat that was covering his left shoulder. His head was wreathed with a crown made of sun rays. According to Filon it stood on a socle made of white marble. In his raised hand he held a torch that could be lighted and therefore served as a lighthouse at night and a navigational sign during the day. We know his face owing to coins that were minted in the middle of 3rd century BC, they were decorated with it. Unfortunately build on an uneven soil it was soon damaged severly by a forceful earthquake in 224 BC. Torn to pieces that fell to the ground the Colossus of Rhodes was left there till 653 AD when the Arabs invaded the island. They damaged the remains to obtain bronze. Such a gripping story just has to be enough to book a flight to Rhodes.