Seven Wonders of the World
around the second century B.C. These "wonders" rivaled those created by nature in their size, majesty, and beauty. Six of the seven wonders no longer stand, having been destroyed by natural disaster or by humans. In chronological order, the Seven Wonders were:
1) The Great Pyramid of Giza -
A gigantic stone structure near the ancient city of Memphis, serving as a tomb for the Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu. The only Wonder which does not
require a description by early historians and poets as it is the only one still standing. The pyramid still stands at the city of Giza, a necropolis of ancient Memphis, and today part of Greater Cairo.
2) The Hanging Gardens of Babylon -
A palace with legendary gardens built on the banks of the Euphrates river by King Nebuchadnezzar II. Supposedly located on the east bank of the River Euphrates, about 50 km south of Baghdad, Iraq, its possible they may have only existed only in the minds of Greek poets and scholars. But, as described by scholar Diodorus Siculus, they sounded grand indeed: "The approach
to the Garden sloped like a hillside and the several parts of the structure rose from one another tier on tier... On all this, the earth had been piled... and was thickly planted with trees of every kind that, by their great size and other charm, gave pleasure to the beholder... The water machines [raised] the water in great abundance from the river, although no one outside could see it."
3) The statue of Zeus at Olympia -
An enormous statue of the Greek father of gods (in whose honor the Ancient
Olympic games were held), carved by the great sculptor Pheidias, . 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, Egypt, and Sicily to celebrate the Olympics and to worship their king of gods: Zeus.
4) The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus -
A beautiful temple in Asia Minor erected in honor of the Greek goddess of
hunting and wild nature. To those who visited it, the Ephesusian temple was more then merely that - it was the most beautiful structure on earth. Built in honor of the Greek goddess Artemis (or Diana), the temple housed many works of art, including four ancient bronze statues of Amazons sculpted by
the finest artists at the time. When St. Paul visited the city, the temple was adorned with golden pillars and silver statuettes, and was decorated with paintings.
5) The Mausoleum at Halicanassus -
A fascinating tomb constructed for King Maussollos, Persian satrap of
Caria. It's said that the beauty of the Mausoleum was not only in the structure itself, but in the decorations and statues that adorned the outside at different levels on the podium and the roof. These were tens of life-size as well as under and over life-size free-standing statues of people, lions,
horses, and other animals. The statues were carved by four Greek sculptors: Bryaxis, Leochares, Scopas, and Timotheus, each responsible for one side. Because the statues were of people and animals, the Mausoleum holds a special place in history as it was not dedicated to the gods of Ancient Greece.
6) The Colossus of Rhodes -
An enormous statue of Helios the sun-god, erected by the Greeks near the harbor of a Mediterranean Island. The construction of the Colossus took
12 years and was finished in 282 BC. For years, the statue stood at the harbor entrance, until a strong earthquake hit Rhodes about 226 BC. The city was badly damaged, and the Colossus was broken at its weakest point, the knee. The Rhodians received an immediate offer from Ptolemy III
Eurgetes of Egypt to cover all restoration costs for the toppled monument. However, an oracle was consulted and forbade the re-erection. For almost a millennium, the statue lay broken in ruins. In AD 654, the Arabs invaded
Rhodes. They disassembled the remains of the broken Colossus and
sold them to a Jew from Syria. It is said that the fragments had to be transported to Syria on the backs of 900 camels.
7) The Lighthouse of Alexandria -
A lighthouse built by the Ptolemies on the island of Pharos off the coast of
their capital city. Of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, it's
the only one which had a practical use in addition to its architectural elegance. 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 reflection of which could be seen more than 35 miles off-shore. Legend says the mirror was also used to detect and burn enemy ships before they could reach the shore.