Ruins of Temple of Olympian Zeus

The Temple of Olympian Zeus
of which remains only massive ruins, was one of the largest buildings of Greek architecture, measuring 112.60 by 56.30 meters. It was built in 480 b.C. in honor of Zeus, after the great victory brought against the Carthaginians. The shape of this temple was absolutely unique due to its feature of having a wall surrounding the temple with half-columns emerging up from it. Between them stood impressive statues of giants, the telamones, which functioned as load-bearing supports for the structure. A copy of one of these giants remains among the ruins, while the originals are on display at the Archeological Museum.