One of the most famous bronzes in the world, the Poseidon of Artemision, created around 460 b.c., was discovered in the sea off of Cape Artemision, Greece. Perhaps because he was found underwater, most believe he is indeed Poseidon, god of the Sea, and not Zeus, although this decision is not unanimous. Larger than life, the original stands well over six feet tall, and his outstretched arm was possibly holding a trident, ready to hurl. The extended pose represented a new era in Greek sculpture in which artists tried to express action and human movement, but the effect is not yet complete, as their is no difference in relaxed and contracted muscles, nor any twisting of the torso musculature. The head has an elaborate hair treatment of braids pulled around the front, and the curled beard reflects the grandeur and power of the Greek gods, superior in all ways, including physically, to mortals. The eyes were originally inlaid of a different material.

The god Poseidon is the brother of Zeus, and second in power only to him. After overthrowing their father, Cronus, they drew lots to divide rule of the world. Poseidon won the rule of the sea, and received the trident as a weapon, strong enough to shatter any object. Poseidon is a greedy and quarrelsome god, and often got involved in fights with other gods by trying to take over their domains. He had a huge shell as a carriage, drawn by sea horses and accompanied by Nereides, nymphs of the deep , and Triton, his trumpeter. Not just the god of the sea, Poseidon was connected with the powerful forces of what arose from beneath it and over it as well; typhoons, earthquakes, tidal waves, volcanoes, etc. The legendary sites of some of his “disagreements” with other gods are in highly seismic areas of the Aegean Sea.