Editing Statue (section)

===Antiquity===
====Religion====
Throughout history, statues have been associated with [[cult image]]s in many religious traditions, from [[Ancient Egypt]], [[Ancient India]], [[Ancient Greece]], and [[Ancient Rome]] to the present.  Egyptian statues showing kings as [[sphinx]]es have existed since the [[Old Kingdom of Egypt|Old Kingdom]], the oldest being for [[Djedefre]] ({{circa|2500 BC}}).<ref>''The Egyptian Museum in Cairo'' by Abeer El-Shahawy and Farid Atiya (10 November 2005) {{ISBN|9771721836}} page 117</ref> The oldest statue of a striding pharaoh dates from the reign of [[Senwosret I]] ({{circa|1950 BC}}) and is the Egyptian Museum, Cairo.<ref>'' The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt'' by Donald B. Redford (15 December 2000) {{ISBN|0195102347}} page 230</ref> The [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt]] (starting around 2000 BC) witnessed the growth of [[block statue]]s which then became the most popular form until the [[Ptolemaic Kingdom|Ptolemaic period]] ({{circa|300 BC}}).<ref>''Egyptian Statues'' by Gay Robins (4 March 2008) {{ISBN|0747805202}} page 28</ref>

The focal point of the [[cella]] or main interior space of a Roman or [[Greek temple]] was a statue of the deity it was dedicated to. In major temples these could be several times life-size.  Other statues of deities might have subordinate positions along the side walls.

The oldest statue of a [[deity]] in Rome was the bronze statue of [[Ceres (mythology)|Ceres]] in 485 BC.<ref>''Famous Firsts in the Ancient Greek and Roman World'' by David Matz (Jun 2000) {{ISBN|0786405996}} page 87</ref><ref>''The Art of Rome c.753 B.C.-A.D. 337'' by Jerome Jordan Pollitt (30 June 1983) {{ISBN|052127365X}} page 19</ref> The oldest statue in Rome is now the statue of [[Diana (mythology)|Diana]] on the [[Aventine Hill|Aventine]].<ref>''Samnium and the Samnites'' by E. T. Salmon (2 September 1967) {{ISBN|0521061857}} page 181</ref>

====Politics====
For a successful Greek or Roman politician or businessman (who donated considerable sums to public projects for the honour), having a public statue, preferably in the local [[Forum (Roman)|forum]] or the grounds of a [[Roman temple|temple]] was an important confirmation of status, and these sites filled up with statues on [[plinth]]s (mostly smaller than those of their 19th century equivalents).  Fragments in Rome of a [[bronze colossus of Constantine]] and the marble [[colossus of Constantine]] show the enormous scale of some imperial statues; other examples are recorded, notably one of [[Nero]].

The [[wonders of the world]] include several statues from antiquity, with the [[Colossus of Rhodes]] and the [[Statue of Zeus at Olympia]] among the [[Seven Wonders of the Ancient World]].