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| Nashville, "the Athens of the South," first built a replica of the Athenian Parthenon in 1897. |
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| A larger-than-life statue of Athena was added in 1990. |
Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia 36.18
Pliny praises the skill of the artist responsible for the Athena statue in the ancient Parthenon.
Phidian clarissimum esse per omnes gentes, quae Iovis Olympii famam intellegunt, nemo dubitat, sed ut laudari merito sciant etiam qui opera eius non videre, proferemus argumenta parva et ingenii tantum. Neque ad hoc Iovis Olympii pulchritudine utemur, non Minervae Athenis factae amplitudine, cum sit ea cubitorum XXVI — ebore haec et auro constat —sed in scuto eius Amazonum proelium caelavit intumescente ambitu, in parmae eiusdem concava parte deorum et Gigantum dimicationes, in soleis vero Lapitharum et Centaurorum. Adeo momenta omnia capacia artis illi fuere.
Loeb Translation:
"That Pheidias is the most famous sculptor Pheidias, among all peoples who appreciate the fame of his Olympian Jupiter is beyond doubt, but in order that even those who have not seen his works may be assured that his praises are well-earned, I shall produce evidence that is insignificant in itself and sufficient only to prove his inventiveness. To do so, I shall not appeal to the beauty of his Olympian Jupiter or to the size of his Minerva at Athens, even though this statue, made of ivory and gold, is 26 cubits in height. But rather, I shall mention her shield, on the convex border of which he engraved a battle of the Amazons, and on the hollow side combats of gods and giants, and her sandals, on which he depicted combats of Lapiths and Centaurs. So truly did every detail lend itself to his art."
