Phidias

Phidias was a Greek sculptor active in the fifth century BC, associated with the Parthenon's sculptural decoration and the gold-and-ivory Athena Parthenos made for its interior. Religious commissions placed his work at the centre of Athenian public life, joining monumental scale with carefully organized figures and drapery. The surviving Parthenon sculptures reflect the work of a large workshop; individual carvings should not all be assigned to his own hand. Later replicas and ancient descriptions preserve evidence of lost statues. Distinguishing an original, a workshop contribution and a later copy is therefore essential to understanding his work and its subsequent influence.