Charioteer of Delphi, Bronze statue in Delphi Archaeological Museum, Greece

The Charioteer of Delphi is a 1.8-meter bronze statue of a young man, displayed in the Delphi Archaeological Museum. He wears a long, belted tunic with deep vertical pleats gathered at the shoulders, and a fillet band crosses his forehead over tight side-curls. His right hand grips thin reins, while the left arm is severed above the wrist; the bronze has a greenish patina.

The bronze was set up at Delphi around 474 BC, or possibly 478 BC, by Polyzalus, tyrant of Gela in Sicily, to thank Apollo for a chariot-race win at the Pythian Games. It belonged to a group with a chariot, four or six horses and attendants. A rockfall, probably the earthquake of 373 BC, buried it until excavations in 1896.

The figure shows a chariot racer moments after winning at the Pythian Games, where athletes competed to honor Apollo and received laurel wreaths as prizes. The garment falls in long folds to the feet and shows how a driver looked during the formal victory ceremony.

The room in the museum allows visitors to walk around the work from all directions and also shows small details such as the inlaid eyes. Early morning or late afternoon brings fewer visitors to the hall, allowing a quieter view.

The reins survive: the right hand still grips thin reins together with a cylindrical riding crop, so the fingers are not closed on empty air. The left arm is broken off above the wrist. The statue was found in 1896 in three pieces — head and upper torso, lower torso, and right arm — and the lower torso still keeps a bluish tint after a century indoors.