A place

Lindos

2 stories from this place.

The Footnote June 24, 2026 · Lindos, Rhodes

The Rhodian Sculptor Who Spent Twelve Years Building the Colossus and Killed Himself When a Crack Appeared

Chares of Lindos was a pupil of the Greek master sculptor Lysippus and the principal architect of the Colossus of Rhodes. He spent twelve years (294–282 BC) directing the construction. By one of two competing legends, he killed himself when a crack appeared in the finished statue's leg. The other legend says his commissioners short-paid him into bankruptcy.

Read the story →

The Footnote June 24, 2026 · Mandraki Harbour, Rhodes

The Greek Sculptor Who Built the Colossus of Rhodes and May Have Killed Himself When It Cracked

Chares of Lindos was the Rhodian sculptor who built the 33-metre bronze Colossus of Rhodes between approximately 292 and 280 BC. He had been a pupil of Lysippos. Late-antique tradition claims he killed himself when he discovered a substantial computational error in the statue's stress profile. The Colossus stood for 54 years and was knocked down by an earthquake in 226 BC.

Read the story →