THE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD
* The Great Pyramid of Giza
It is the one and only Ancient Wonder which does not require a description by early historians and poets. It is the one and only Ancient seven Wonder that does not need speculations concerning its appearance, size, and shape. It is the oldest, yet it is the only surviving of the Seven Ancient Wonders. It is the Great Pyramid of Giza.
* The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Some stories indicate the Hanging Gardens towered hundreds of feet into the air, but archaeological explorations indicate a more modest, but still impressive, height.
* The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
This is a statue of the God in whose honor the Ancient Olympic games were held. It was located on the land that gave its very name to the Olympics. At the time of the games, wars stopped, and athletes came from Asia Minor, Syria, Egypt, and Sicily to celebrate the Olympics and to worship their king of Gods: Zeus.
* The Colossus of Rhodes
The island of Rhodes was an important economic centre in the ancient world. It is located off the southwestern tip of Asia Minor where the Aegean Sea meets the Mediterranean. The capitol city, also named Rhodes, was built in 408 B.C
* The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
Eight hundred years after its destruction, the magnificent Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, had been completely forgotten by the people of the town that had once held it in such pride
*The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus is the burial place of an ancient king. Yet the Mausoleum is different – so different from the Pyramid that it earned its reputation – and a spot within the list – for other reasons. Geographically, it is closer to the Temple of Artemis… And it was the beauty of the tomb rather than its size that fascinated its visitors for years.
* The Pharos of Alexandria (The Lighthouse of Alexandria)
Of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only one had a practical use in addition to its architectural elegance: The Lighthouse of Alexandria. For sailors, it ensured a safe return to the Great Harbor. For architects, it meant even more: it was the tallest building on Earth. And for scientists, it was the mysterious mirror that fascinated them most… The mirror which reflection could be seen more than 50 km (35 miles) off-shore.
Add comment December 23, 2008 Rex
Seven wonders of the world
This list of seven wonders is a list that has been continuously compiled over ages now, to catalogue the most splendid constructions done by mankind in this world. Earlier it was a list drawn from the guide books of popular Hellenic sight seers and mainly include the constructions done near the Mediterranean region.
The ancient Greeks were the ones who used to list down all the marvelous constructions in the world and there were actually many more than seven structures that were listed in it. The number 7 wonders was chosen as it was considered magical by the Greeks.
There were also cases when many of such lists drawn were agreed on 6 rather than 7 structures. Since it was the Greeks who made the lists and hence it is not surprising to see many of Greek structures in these earlier lists. Structures like the Great wall of China would have been included in these earlier lists if only the Greeks would have seen them as they were far off from their world.
If told it will be a surprise to many people that the current Seven Wonders of the World didn’t even existed at the same time as many of them didn’t survived through the passage of time. Even a traveler coming from the past would require a time machine to browse through all the structures.
Today, we have emails thrown up in our inboxes to vote for the Seven Wonders of the World as the organization who is in charge to announce these wonders of the world leaves it to the people to decide about the ranking for Seven Wonders of the World. The current Seven Wonders of the World have been elected by more than 100 million votes from around the world. These structures are without a ranking and are presented as the 7 wonders of the world in a group. Currently the group has the following as the seven structures chosen to be the Seven Wonders of the World:
Chic henitza, Mexico
Taj Mahal
Petra, Jordan
Christ Reedemer, Brasil
Colosseum, Italy
Great wall of China
Machu picchu, Peru.
Add comment June 24, 2008 Rex
