The Temple of Hera at Olympia (sometimes called the Heraion) is an ancient Doric order temple, built in honor of Zeus's wife, Hera, the goddess of women and marriage.
According to the ancient Greek traveler Pausanias (from here), "In the rear chamber [of the Temple] one of the two pillars is of oak. The length of the temple is one hundred and sixty-nine feet, the breadth sixty-three feet, the height not short of fifty feet. Who the architect was they do not relate. Every fourth year there is woven for Hera a robe by the Sixteen women, and the same also hold games called Heraea. The games consist of foot-races for maidens. These are not all of the same age. The first to run are the youngest; after them come the next in age, and the last to run are the oldest of the maidens." After describing the layout of the Temple, he goes on to say that In the temple of Hera is an image of Zeus, and the image of Hera is sitting on a throne with Zeus standing by her, bearded and with a helmet on his head. They are crude works of art. The figures of Seasons next to them, seated upon thrones, were made by the Aeginetan Smilis."
The Temple of Hera was destroyed by an earthquake in the early 4th century A.D., and no efforts were made to fully rebuild it.These days, the Temple is where the torch of the Olympic flame is lit by using the sun's rays.
