Gold made the Statue of Zeus at Olympia’s robe and ornaments.
The statue used chryselephantine construction, combining gold with ivory over a supporting wooden framework. Gold represented Zeus’s robe, hair, and other features, while ivory covered the visible flesh. Additional materials, including precious stones and dark wood, were used for parts of the throne and decoration.
Phidias created the seated figure in the fifth century BC. It occupied the Temple of Zeus at Olympia and showed the god holding a figure of Nike in one hand and a scepter in the other, according to ancient descriptions.
The statue was later moved or destroyed, and no confirmed fragment survives. Modern knowledge comes from written accounts, representations on coins, and archaeological evidence from the workshop traditionally associated with Phidias.