The story of the head’s discovery is related by Henry S. Robinson in Corinth excavation notebook 239.

Henry S. Robinson was both director of the ASCSA from 1959-1969 and director of Corinth Excavations from 1959-1965. While excavations were conducted continuously from 1896, there were times due to historical events in Greece that excavations were interrupted. After such an interruption, Robinson resumed annual excavations at Ancient Corinth in 1959 and excavations have been happening continuously ever since. Robinson decided that holding both a directorship of ASCSA and Corinth was an immense task and, thus, he appointed C. K. Williams II as the first independent director of the Corinth Excavations. Williams retired from the position in 1997.

Robinson reports on the location of the find of the head as follows:

 

“This site lies in a field belonging to the widow of Papamichael, some 600m west of the Odeion, on the right (north) side of the road to Haghioi Anargyroi, immediately east of the ravine in which we have thrown our excavation dump in 1959-1961.”

 

And the story, as it unfolds in Robinson’s excavation notebook, is as follows:

 

“In December of 1961 or at least before January 1962, the field was ploughed for the owner by a tractor drawn plough belonging to Konst. Giambouranis and Evag. Tsibouris, both residents of Archaia Korinthos. In the course of the work they found a marble head of a deity, over life-size, with inset eyeballs and inset bronze eyelashes. The nose was missing, as were the inset pupils of the eyes. This find they reported to the Archaeological Service in Athens in late February and turned over to the Corinth Museum guards on March 2, 1962.

Mr. Verdelis, the Ephor, requested us to dig briefly in the area where the head was found in an attempt to recover the nose and pupils. With four workmen we undertook to dig in the area where Giambouranis and Tsibouris reported the discovery of the head. During the day the man who drove the Giambouranis-Tsibouris tractor on the day of the discovery of the head reported that the head was in the area just north, and at end of day practically on the line between the two areas designated we found one of the locks of hair from the right side of the neck of the head. Since the discovery of the head, the owner has planted his field with olive trees. We have agreed with the son of the widow Papamichael that after the spring excavation we will refill our trenches and replant such olives as we removed, paying him some compensation for loss of growing time of the trees. If, however, the finds are such as to warrant leaving the trenches open, we will negotiate for the purchase of the property.”

 

The head of Athena/Apollo is not on display in the Corinth Museum but rather is kept in storage among other spectacular marble portraits.