bronze Athena, goddess of intelligence

Height: 55cm from the top of her helmet to the bottom of her integrated base. Width from vertical line down from her bent elbow to outer edge of shield: 25cm . Depth from top of spear to back of crest: 12cm . Diameter of her shield: 15cm . She weighs 4k

Athena, daughter of Zeus, was the goddess of intelligence, wisdom, resourcefulness and strategic thought. She was also the protectress of women and female crafts.

Zeus discovered that Metis, the goddess of intelligence, was pregnant with his child. Fearing that the child would be superior to him, he turned Metis into a fly, and swallowed her. Nine months later, Zeus had a terrible migraine, and summoned his son Hephaistos, who promptly took his axe, cut open Zeus' head, and out popped baby Athena. His brainchild. Fully formed in miniature, and armed for combat, with her helmet, shield, and spear. With her father, she later shared the aegis, the snake-fringed cloak with the image of the head of Medusa in its centre.

She was the patron goddess of Athens, to which she gave her name and the gift of the olive. She favoured the heroes Herakles, Jason, Achilles, Perseus and Odysseus, and was associated with Nike, the winged goddess of achievement and victory. Her symbols are the owl and the olive.

The bronze pieces are cast in Greece using the traditional lost wax method. As nothing is mass-produced, there will inevitably be slight variations in texture, patina, and colour. No two pieces are ever the same. If mounted on a marble base, it will be a black or very dark grey base. There may be a variation of some millimetres in the dimensions of the base from time to time.

It's All Greek is proud to have been working with the Semitekolo family foundry since 1999. It has been a privilege to handle these gorgeous pieces and to sell them to customers all over the world.