The Temple of Zeus in Olympia was considered to be the largest Doric temple of its day. Its columns were 10.43 meters high and 2.25 meters in diameter at base (Vikatou, 2012, 2). The temple is decorated with several statues of not only gods but also of famous athletes such as Pelops, Oinomaos, and Hippodameia who were the key players in the myth of Pelops’ chariot race with Oinomaos. The west side of the temple has a sculpture that depicts an easily recognizable myth to the athletes, the Centauromachy (Barringer, 2005, p. 212). The sculptures located at the pedimental, along with the lion head water spouts, and roof tiles were made out of pure marble. But the base of the columns of the temple were made out of local shell limestone covered with white stucco (Vikatou, 2012, 2).

            The site was discovered during the 19th century (Barringer, 2005, p.211). The excavation of the site began during the French expedition in 1829 and was continued under the direction of Ernst Curtis, a German archaeologist and historian who was known or being very thorough with his work. Not only was he able to unearth most of the site of Olympia but he discovered the Temple of Zeus; he was also able to reveal the original site of the Olympic Games and the layout of the entire area (Britannica, 1998, 1).

            Inside the temple once stood one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World which was the Statue of Zeus. It was created by the Greek sculptor Phidias. The statue was said to have been 40 ft. high, covered with gold and ivory and precious stones. The entire thing took almost eight years to make. The statue was dated back to 430 BCE when archaeologists discovered the remains of Phidias’ workshop in 1950. The statue was destroyed during the 5th century AD and no copies have ever been found. It was hypothesized that the temple was dedicated for the celebration of the Olympic Games which occurs every four years (Younger and Rehak, 2009, p. 47). The winner of said games would have been crowned in the entrance of the temple.

            By carefully tracking historical events, archaeologist dated the temple to around 470-456 BC. According to Pausanias’ accounts, “the temple was created by the city of Elis from the spoils of its conquest of neighboring Pisa” (Barringer, 2005, p. 213). The collapse of the temple occurred in early to mid 6th century AD, the temple stood for 1,000 years. As of today, it is as popular tourist spot where visitors can see and take pictures of the remains of the once great temple.