The Archaeological Museum of Vathý houses many precious findings from Samos, like sculptures, ceramics, inscriptions and so on. Especially important are the sculptures from the Heraion. Note that this museum has two separate buildings. Although the more important is the first building (that you cannot miss, as there is ticket office here), don't forget to visit the second.
The gigantic kouros (youth) statue is almost as tall as 5 metres. The material is white marble with grey vein from Samos. The body and the head were found respectively in 1980 and 1984 in the Heraion. It stood probably on a side of the sacred road.
The inscription on one of the thighs says "Isches anetheken o Resios", meaning Isches the Resian put (this). "Resios (Resian)" can indicate his place of origin, or his tribe.
The statue was probably made between 580 and 560 BCE. Gigantic kouroi were made only in the earlier period, and later on made life-size or slightly larger.
These archaic sculptures from the Heraion are called "Geneleos Group", from the name of the sculptor. They were made between ca. 560 and 540 BCE, slightly later than the gigantic Kouros above. The group was originally composed of five female (korai) and one male figure, of which two female and one male figures are in the Samos Archaeological Museum, and one female, called Ornithé, is in the Antikemuseen of Berlin.
These are the statues housed in the second building. The collection of the museum estends to the early Byzantine period.
