The bronze statue of Leonidas stands at the northern end of Sparta's main avenue, on the broad plaza below the acropolis hill. It is a 1968 work by the sculptor Vasos Falireas and shows the Spartan king at Thermopylae — helmet, spear, round hoplite shield — in full forward motion. The plinth below carries Leonidas's famously laconic reply to the Persian demand to lay down arms: Molon labe — "come and get them."
The statue is the obvious meeting-point and photo stop in Sparta and is floodlit at night. The stadium and football pitches behind it are built on the slope of the ancient acropolis. The plaza is also where parades and Greek national-day celebrations are held; on a quiet evening it is mostly old men and stray dogs.