Greece: statue of goddess Artemis found

From The Independent in South Africa:

July 10 2006

Athens – Greek archaeologists have unearthed the torso of a statue of the goddess Artemis dating back to the first century BC during a dig in central Greece, local archaeological services said on Monday.

“It is a very important find and the most beautiful feminine statue found in Thessalia,” Athanassios Tzafalias, the head of the search team in Larissa said.

The 80cm tall torso was found “intact and richly adorned” wearing a short tunic covered by a deer hide, Tzafalias said.

He said the original statue measured more than 1,60m.

He held out hopes of finding other parts of the statue as the dig goes on.

The daughter of Leto and Zeus, and the twin of Apollo, Artemis was the goddess of the wilderness, the hunt and wild animals, and fertility.

She was one of the Olympians and a virgin goddess.

Her main vocation was to roam mountain forests and uncultivated land with her nymphs in attendance hunting for lions, panthers, hinds and stags. – Sapa-AFP