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Lenormant Athena

Lenormant Athena is a small Greek statuette created in the 1st century CE from Pentelic marble. Found in 1859 near the Pnyx Hill in Athens, it was identified a year later by François Lenormant as a reduced copy of Phidias’ Athena Parthenos, and it takes its nickname from him. The 41-centimeter-high work is of great art-historical importance because it preserves details of Athena, the shield reliefs, and the base that were previously known only from written sources. Athena stands calmly in an upright pose, wearing an Attic peplos, with her left arm resting on her shield. The statue remains unfinished, and today it is kept in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens, inventory number 128.

Lenormant Athena, a marble statue of a helmeted draped female figure holding a rounded object and a coiled serpent-like form
Lenormant Athena, a marble copy of Athena Parthenos, shown as a helmeted draped figure holding symbolic objects.
July 2016 © · CC0
Unfinished marble Lenormant Athena statue with a helmet and long tunic, holding a large coiled object.
The unfinished Lenormant Athena, a marble statue showing a helmeted female figure with rough, partially carved surfaces.
© Unknown (After Phidias' Athena Parthenos) · CC BY-SA 2.5
Lenormant Athena marble statuette of a draped female figure holding a shield-like object.
Lenormant Athena, an unfinished marble statuette, shown with a shield-like object and a small figure at her side.
April 2018 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Lenormant Athena shown from the back, a headless and armless draped marble figure with a coiled element near her right foot.
Lenormant Athena seen from the back, showing the draped marble figure and the coiled detail at her foot.
1903 © Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain
Unfinished marble statuette of the Lenormant Athena with rough chisel marks and draped robes.
The Lenormant Athena, an unfinished marble statuette with visible chisel marks and flowing drapery.
© Unknown (After Phidias' Athena Parthenos) · CC BY-SA 2.5

Identification

TitleLenormant Athena
TypeSmall Greek statuette
Alternative titleAthena Lenormant
Identified asA small copy of Phidias' Athena Parthenos

Historical context

Identification date1860
Date of creation1st century CE

Discovery and provenance

Name originNamed after François Lenormant
Initial placement after discoveryPlaced in a corner of the Temple of Hephaestus (then known as the Theseion), apparently because it was considered an unremarkable find
Discovery locationNear the Pnyx Hill in Athens
Discovery date1859

Creator

Identified byFrançois Lenormant

Physical characteristics

Right hand positionResting on a support
Height41 cm
Back conditionUnfinished
ConditionUnfinished
Depicted figureAthena
PoseStanding calmly and gracefully, with her weight on her right leg and her left leg relaxed/bent
ClothingAttic peplos
Left arm positionResting on her shield
Base decorationBirth of Pandora

Materials

Marble sourceQuarried from Mount Pentelicus
MaterialPentelic marble

Iconography and meaning

Possible missing attributeNike, probably held in her right hand, is not preserved
Shield decorationAmazonomachy

Location and ownership

Current locationNational Archaeological Museum, Athens
Inventory number128

Significance

Art-historical significanceOf great art-historical importance because it shows the appearance of Phidias' statue, including the reliefs on the shield and the base, which were previously known only from literary sources