Chares of Lindos

Who is Chares of Lindos?

Chares of Lindos was a Greek sculptor born on the island of Rhodes. He was a pupil of Lysippus. Chares constructed the Colossus of Rhodes in 282 BC, an enormous bronze statue of the sun god Helios and also the patron god of Rhodes. The statue was built to commemorate Rhodes' victory over the invading Macedonians in 305 BC, led by Demetrius I, son of Antigonus, a general under Alexander the Great. Also attributed to Chares was a colossal head which was brought to Rome and dedicated by P. Lentulus Spinther on the Capitoline Hill, in 57 BC.

The Colossus of Rhodes is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and was considered Chares's greatest accomplishment, until its destruction in an earthquake in 226 BC.

It is believed that Chares did not live to see his project finished. There are several legends stating that he committed suicide. In one tale he has almost finished the statue when someone points out a small flaw in the construction. The sculptor is so ashamed of it he kills himself. In another version, the Rhodians asked Chares how much he would charge for a statue fifty feet high, and when he answered, asked him how much for a statue twice as big; he answered twice as much - and they awarded the contract; he had overlooked that doubling the height will mean an eightfold increase in the amount of materials needed. This drives him into bankruptcy and suicide. The work may have been completed by Laches, also an inhabitant of Lindos.