Bronze Griffin from Ancient Olympia to Star in New York Exhibition

A remarkable bronze griffin from ancient Olympia will return to the United States for a major exhibition at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met), just a year after Greece repatriated the artefact following its illegal trafficking.

The well-preserved griffin once adorned a tripod cauldron in Olympia in the 7th century BC. It spent 89 years in the United States before Greece recovered and repatriated it last year.

The griffin is among more than 180 ancient works of art from 29 institutions across 11 countries that will feature in the exhibition, titled “Weaving the Sea: Art and Identity Beyond Ancient Greece.” The exhibition opens on December 20 and will run until April 11, 2027.

From the Homeric epics to the wider Mediterranean

The bronze griffin carries particular significance for Greece, but it is not the only object that highlights the exhibition’s importance.

The exhibition explores the period from the 8th century BC to the early 5th century BC, covering the emergence of the city-state, the establishment of pan-Hellenic sanctuaries and the Olympic Games, as well as the composition of the Homeric epics.

During this period, Greek merchants, craftsmen, colonists and mercenaries travelled extensively across the Mediterranean. They returned home not only with goods but also with new ideas that influenced artistic production.

The exhibition will also present the Zeus of Ugento, a major work from the National Archaeological Museum of Taranto, in the United States for the first time. Local bronze workers created the Archaic-period statue, which provides evidence of the influence of Greek metalworking on the other side of the Adriatic.

Another notable object is a large Greek bronze vessel discovered at the acropolis of Susa in Achaemenid Persia. The artefact reflects the reach of ancient commercial networks into the East.

The Vatican Museums have selected a kylix for the exhibition’s promotional campaign. The ancient drinking cup depicts Heracles crossing the sea inside the cauldron of the sun god Helios.

The Met curators Sean Hemingway, Alexis Belis and Delphine Tonglet are overseeing the exhibition, which will remain on display through April 11, 2027.

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