Welcome to Adventurer Edge, Humans have been on this planet for thousands of years. His presence can be felt through ancient ruins worldwide. These ancient ruins have convinced the modern man of today that man has created marvels using his skills, wherever he went and they continue to amaze us, even to this day. Some of them are so astonishing that we know them as “the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World”. What are these wonders? Where are they located? Do they even exist today? Who built these wonders? When? Why? How? We are going to share all this information with you.
The very first question that must have come in your mind, must be “Which 7 of the ancient works are considered to be wonders?” And how were they declared wonders? Adventurers, the list of these wonders was presented by well-known Greek historians, more than 2000 years ago. And that list is still considered the authentic list of 7 Wonders of the Ancient World. Let’s have a look at these 7 wonders.
7 Wonders of the Ancient World
Lighthouse of Alexandria
Near the beach city of Alexandria in Egypt, built in the historical island of Pharos, the Lighthouse of Alexandria is considered to be the first lighthouse, rather the first tower ever.
It was built in 280 BC during the time of Ptolemy II. Its main purpose was to guide the merchant ships find their ways across the sea. During the day, a metallic outer lining on the tower would reflect the sunlight, making it visible from miles into the sea. However, during night, a fire was lit on the top to make it visible.
It is believed that the tower could be seen from 35 to 50 miles away. It was 380 feet high according to some accounts while some others reported it to be 350 feet high. It had 3 main parts. The lower part was rectangular and had many large rooms. The middle part of the tower was octagonal and it had terraces for tourists, where they could enjoy the views of the sea.
Whereas the top most part was cylindrical in shape. That’s the part where the fire was lit to guide ships. Right at the top, there was a 16 feet high statue, that could possibly be of Alexander the Great or some other Greek emperor. This lighthouse got seriously damaged by an earth quake in the 10th century AD.
And then it got completely destroyed by earth quakes in the 14th century. Later on, in the 15th century, Sultan Ashraf Sayf Al-Din built a castle at this same spot. The castle even includes some of the remains of the tower. The castle can still be visited today in Alexandria in Egypt where some of the remains of the lighthouse still exist.
Colossus of Rhodes
The Colossus of Rhodes is in fact a statue of the sun god Heleus or Apollo. It was built between 295 to 280 BC in the Greek island of Rhodes, by the Greek Artist Chares. It was a stone statue but its outer surface was made from brass and iron. According to a theory, it was installed on the port of Rhodes in a way that one of his feet lie on one side while the other one on the opposite side.
And ships would go through the space between the feet. But more recent research revealed that the statue was in fact erected on one side of the port and stood on a foundation. And both of his feet were together at the same place. It was 110 feet high. The Colossus of Rhodes didn’t even last a century and got seriously hit by an earth quake in 224 BC.
Its ruins were left untouched at the same spot for 800 years. Witnessing such a miserable end to such a glorious monument would make people gasp with wonder. Later in the 7th century AD, when the Islamic empire under Umayyads, reached the Mediterranean, the iron and brass from the remains of this statue were carried on the backs of 900 camels and brought to Syria.
Temple of Artemis
The temple of Artemis was dedicated to the Greek goddess Artemis. She was also known as the goddess of hunt and Diana. She was the daughter of the god Zeus and was highly respected in the Greek mythology. Artemis was also known for her skillful archery. Her temple was built in 550 BC in Ephesus.
It was an ancient Greek city whose remains can still be found in modern day Turkey. It was built by the emperor Croesus. It measured 425 feet in length, 225 feet in width and 60 feet in height. The temple was in fact a grand monument standing upon 127 columns. The marvel of architecture was also praised by the Greek historian Herodotus.
Another interesting fact about this temple is that it was demolished and constructed many times. It was torched by a Greek citizen Herostratus. Later on, when he was captured he confessed doing what he did because he wanted to be remembered in history. Legend has it that the night the temple was torched, was the same night when Alexander the great was born.
It was Alexander who then ordered a reconstruction of the temple in the years that followed. But he didn’t live long enough to see the temple built completely as its construction finished after Alexander’s death. In the 3rd century AD, the temple was destroyed by the German invaders. Hence, it had to be built yet another time.
Later on, it was completely destroyed by a Christian mob in the start of the 5th century AD. Never to be built again. Today the remains of this temple can be found in Selcuk in Turkey.
Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
Queen Artemisia of Greece and her husband, King Mausolus, chose Halicarnassus as their capital city.
And they made it a wonderful place. The ancient city of Halicarnassus is in Turkey in present day and we know it as Bodrum. In the mid-4th century BC, Artemisia built this grand mausoleum when her husband died. This splendid wonder is famous by the name of Mausoleum at Halicarnassus. Built with white marble, this mausoleum used to be a rather splendid monument.
The foundation of this monument is 125 feet long and 104 feet wide. Whereas it’s 134 feet in height. It’s lower most part was in the shape of stairs and rose as high as 7 feet. On the top, there were statues of horses installed on a pyramid shaped roof, standing on 36 tall columns. This grand mausoleum got seriously hit by earth quakes in 13th century AD.
Today we can only see its remains. Some of its remains were also used during the construction of the Bodrum castle. However, some of its ruins can also be found in the London Museum.
Statue of Zeus
Zeus is translated as ‘the God of the Sky’ in ancient Greek language. He is considered to be the greatest god in Greek mythology.
It was made in 430 BC by the famous scupltor Phidias in Olympia. Olympia is the birth place of Olympics about 3000 years ago. The Olympic games were held each year as a tribute to Zeus. These games were revived in the 19th century AD and are still played in this day and age. These 40 feet tall statue was made from white marble.
It was adorned with gold and ivory artwork. The statue of Zeus depicted Zeus sitting on a grand throne. In its right hand, the statue holds another small statue of crowned Nike, goddess of victory. While in its left hand, it holds a scepter, supporting an eagle. Completed in 8 years, the statue was erected in a temple.
The temple was destroyed in 426 AD by Christians in late Roman empire. The statue of Zeus was subsequently transferred to Constantinople, present day Istanbul, where it got demolished by a fire, 50 years later. We don’t even find any ruins of the temple today. However, its pictures were created from coins that were discovered in 1950.
That’s also the source of finding the exact date of construction of the statue.
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The hanging gardens of Babylon was built during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II in Iraq, from 605 to 662 BC. It is said that the wife of Nebuchadnezzar II was very fond of mountains and trees. So the king got these gardens built to make his wife happy.
It is believed that these gardens were above ground, sort of in the air. But historians have denied this theory many times. According to a British archaeologist, these gardens were built within the walls of the royal palace. And that they were not really hanging in the air, rather rose up in the form of large steps, up to a height of 350 feet.
Some historians even believed that these gardens didn’t exist at all. Herodotus, the famous Greek historians and father of history, does not mention these gardens in his records, at all. However, some Greek historians do believe that these gardens actually existed but they got destroyed in an earth quake in 1st century AD.
The Great Pyramid of Giza
The three pyramids of Giza in Egypt are among the most ancient monuments in human history. These pyramids are known to be the final resting place of pharaohs. Out of these, the oldest and the largest is the great pyramid of Giza or the pyramid of Khufu. It is also called Cheops.
Despite being the oldest and largest, the pyramid of Khufu has been the tallest building in the world for about 4000 years. It’s believed to be constructed in 2700 BC. It was originally 482 feet high, but because of weathering, it got gradually reduced to 450 feet. Its square base is 755 feet on each side and its total area is 13 acres.
Approximately 2.3 million blocks of stone were used in its construction. Each stone weighed around 2.5 – 3 tonnes. Some weighed even more. According to a research, the total weight of all the stones in the great pyramid could weigh up to 5.7 million tonnes. 5.7 Million Tonnes! It is quite astonishing to note that the stones are so skillfully placed that it’s almost impossible to insert a small plastic card between two stones.
To this date, three chambers have been discovered in the great pyramid. The base of the pyramid is square while its sides are triangular. All the four sides join together at one single point at the top. The pyramid of Khufu is the oldest among all the 7 wonders of the ancient world. And it’s the only one that has survived all these years.
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