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Statue of Zues The statue of Zeus at Olympia was built by the famous Greek sculptor Phidias in 435 B.C. The statue was built in honor of Greek god Zeus for the Olympic games. The Olympic Games were held in Olympia in honor of their god Zeus. The Statue of Zeus was the most famous statue of ancient times. The statue was about 40 feet tall. It featured Zeus sitting on his throne. Phidias made Zeus's robe and ornaments. He made Zeus's flesh out of ivory. In the statue, he wore a wreath and held a statue of Nike, his messenger. He held a kings rod in his hand. The statue of Zeus was built in Olympia just 150km west of Athens. It was enclosed in a temple made especially for it and was proclaimed a wonder of the world. To the ancient Greeks, the statue was a symbol of perfection and every year thousands of people would come to the statue and pay their respects. The statue took up the whole temple aisle. A writer of that time said if the statue were to stand up, it would go through the roof. The statue stayed in the temple for years, but it was neglected during Roman times around 394 A.D. It was taken to Constantinople where it seems it was destroyed by fire.