What was the name of the colossal statue inside the Parthenon?

The colossal statue inside the Parthenon was called Athena Parthenos. The name means “Athena the Virgin,” distinguishing this image from other important Athenian representations of the goddess.

Sculptor Phidias supervised the statue’s creation in the mid-fifth century BCE, during the rebuilding of the Acropolis under Pericles. It stood in the eastern chamber, or naos, of the Parthenon and was designed specifically for that enormous interior space. At roughly 13 metres high, it towered above visitors and formed the visual focus of the building.

Athena Parthenos was a chryselephantine sculpture: a wooden framework covered with ivory for the visible flesh and removable gold plates for clothing and armour. She wore a helmet, carried a shield and spear, and held a small figure of Nike. The original statue disappeared in antiquity, but its appearance is known through literary descriptions, coins, reliefs, and later copies.

A common mix-up is Athena Promachos, another colossal statue by Phidias. That figure was made of bronze and stood outdoors on the Acropolis, whereas Athena Parthenos stood inside the Parthenon.