Helios is the Sun itself. His name comes from the Greek word for “Sun” (Ἥλιος). Helios is often shown with a crown of sun rays. He drives a horse-drawn chariot across the sky. Helios was also a guardian of oaths and the god of sight, his gaze believed to witness everything.

As a Titan, from the older generation of gods before the Olympians, Helios had a special role. He was the Titan god of the sun, identified in the Roman tradition as the god Sol. Myths say he lived in a golden palace far away in the River Okeanos (Oceanus). From there, he would come out each morning with the sun’s glow, ready for his daily journey across the sky. Helios was both a god and the sun, bringing light to the world with his chariot.

The Colossus of Rhodes was a massive bronze statue of Helios, erected around 280 BC in the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of the same name. Standing about 32 meters tall, it was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It stood near the city’s harbour, likely on a single pedestal, rather than straddling the harbour entrance as in popular medieval depictions.