Olympias is a reconstruction of an ancient Athenian

Athens

Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...

 trireme

Trireme

A trireme was a type of galley, a Hellenistic-era warship that was used by the ancient maritime civilizations of the Mediterranean, especially the Phoenicians, ancient Greeks and Romans.The trireme derives its name from its three rows of oars on each side, manned with one man per oar...

 and an important example of experimental archaeology

Experimental archaeology

Experimental archaeology employs a number of different methods, techniques, analyses, and approaches in order to generate and test hypotheses, based upon archaeological source material, like ancient structures or artifacts. It should not be confused with primitive technology which is not concerned...

.

She was constructed from 1985 to 1987 by a shipbuilder in Piraeus

Piraeus

Piraeus is a city in the region of Attica, Greece. Piraeus is located within the Athens Urban Area, 12 km southwest from its city center , and lies along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf....

. Finance came from the Hellenic Navy

Hellenic Navy

The Hellenic Navy is the naval force of Greece, part of the Greek Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy has its roots in the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence...

 and donors such as Frank Welsh (a Suffolk

Suffolk

Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...

 banker, writer and trireme enthusiast). The building was advised by the historians J. S. Morrison and John F. Coates and the classics teacher Charles Willink

Sir Charles William Willink, 2nd Baronet

Sir Charles William Willink, 2nd Baronet was an English classical scholar, teacher and baronet. He succeeded his father Sir Henry Willink as Baronet Willink on his death in 1973, and was himself succeeded on his death by his son Sir Edward Daniel Willink.-Life:Sir Henry's eldest son, Charles won a...

, who with Welsh founded the Trireme Trust that initiated the project, and drew on evidence gained from underwater archaeology.