Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1876-02-05
Excavations at mpia-Imporfant
Discoveries Of Ancient Work y OF Art.
ICiTTcsDOntlence z


BERLIN, January 6.-The latest discoveries
which The excavations at Olympia have
yielded are causing general joy among the
learned and non learned. Professor DIR. Cur
titus. the well known author Of the "HistOry
of Greece and Professor Adler, a learned
architect, gave In the last Reicjs enZeiger
the first official account of the results Of [ &c
excavations. Or. Hirschfeld and Herr BOtt-
cher. an architect, the overseers of the WORK.
arrived at DTuva, near Olympia on the 12th
Of September. On the 4th of October they
began the work with one hundred aud
twenty i've WOTkmen. and in the middle OF
December they found the first important
specimens Of ancient art. On the 18th of
December they found at the southeast corner
Of the temple of Zeus a colossal male tors ,
in marble Inserted i'm "a dry wall of later date,
"A wOTil OF Cous iderable artistic value. and in
al PROBABILITY fragment OF the sitting
statue Cf Zeus as umpire in the games
which used 10 be in the middle Of the eastern
gable. Five days later the wOrkmen
struck upon a thTte-sited marble pedestal
with Tie IeTiyctly. preserved dedication
Inscription az the M%sSeOia1S and
Naupsci'ars 30 the Olympic Znus. 10
whom hey dedicate the 1.-THE OF their war
FlUrG,T. In the tuiri line of the in criplion
FatOnios, Of Ieuie, in Thrdce, names hiln-
So! a. TIE sculptor. and boasts n tue fourth
lire That he bad been victor in q com 1e ton
Tor tie Plastic atDrumeUt OF the temple ga
blss- Mkt morning appeared a colossal
female figure of Pentelic marble. broken
INFO two parts, which By its wings a once
Ttveaiej Itself to be the Goddess Of Victory
who had ~TCI! On the PEDESTAL. The fiLuTe
measure from neck To tees III metres. rae
robe. which i-IvcS the Left breast bare, falls
il short IO.GS over the girtle, and iirg the
lower IaTt Of the bOfy 50 closely that its
beautiful TCpOTtiOn- are clearly visible. II
flows OCT in - full curve behind. Toe go.-
Ce,S l. represented as Tying earth wards.
Though heal and arms have not vet been
found tn liyiuC grace OF the Il cure and the
flowing robe excite great admiration. 10 was
at once recognized To- Re the same work of
which fausautas speaks in his description of
the monuments Of Olympia. IL is the tirst
work By Grecisn sculptor Of the fifth CEN
fury before Christ Of which we have dOcu-
meI faTy evidence.
In the place where the Victory was found
several three sided marble blocks came to
light, which have evidently belonged TO the
same pedestal. They bear Inscriptions which
also refer to the history of the McSsenians,
especially one which treats OF the ceSsion
debated frontier district. IL is the dispute
OF which Tacitus speaks in the Annals,
iV.. IS.
From this time orward incessaut discov-
erles have been made, and the work la :
been not so much to seek for works of art as
10 raise them and find hOuse-rOo for them
a c COLOSSAL male torso lay on its back under
the Victory, which, to judge from its very
unfinished state. seems also to have belonged
10 the gable. The elbow of its left arm is
wrapped In the robe which covers the lower
part OF the body. Beneath 1t rests another
colossus, which still wants disinterment.
On the 22d the lower part of a recum bent
ASuEc lIlueI IldNc ildu pace In the
left corner of the gable, and must therefore
Re one Of the river gods which Pausanias
mentions, was found before the east 'front.'
Il is scarcely above life-siZe, and of mas
terly workmanship. The same evening a
male torso was found beside it, and then
female torso, the first specimen of the still
eXtant statues of the western gable.
These are the essential contents of the last
report, which speaks of other happy discoY-
cries especially beautiful life size s4tyr
head In terra Gotta at the foot OF the Il %.
nos hill. a telegram OF the Ist oil January
announces the discovery of a chariOteef and
OF a male torso and the happy completion
OF the river god, the upper part OF whose
body and the head in a state of perfect pre-
seIvatiOn have come to light. The number
OF the discoveries having 50 unsurpassed all
expectation, the time ard strength of the
two officials at Olympia have, of course,
been so fully occupied that they have not
been able to describe and estimate with ac-
cuIacy each Individual discovery. Photo
graphs and casts Will be sent to Berlin as
soOl as possible. y telegram which has just
arrived announces the discovery OF a statue
OF PTaXitees.