The Seven Wonders Selected by the Ancient Greeks

The Seven Wonders Selected by the Ancient Greeks When the ancient Greeks decided to select seven wonders from the many impressive structures that had been constructed throughout history, there was a lot of argument about which structures to select. Over the years, many different lists were created. Finally, a list was presented that most Greeks agreed included the seven most wondrous wonders, each a unique achievement.

Visit the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World Great Pyramid at Giza Hanging Gardens of Babylon Statue of Zeus at Olympia Temple of Artemis at Ephesus Mausoleum at Halicarnassus Colossus of Rhodes Lighthouse at Alexandria

The Great Pyramid at Giza

The Great Pyramid at Giza Until the early 1800's, the Great Pyramid at Giza was the tallest building in the world!

The Great Pyramid at Giza The Great pyramid was made by hand! It is nearly 800 feet long, 450 feet high. It was built with over two million of blocks of stone. The average weight of each stone is about 2, 500 pounds - around the same weight as a car!

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon Different paths and a series of steps connected the various levels. The gardens were a wonderland of greenery, flowering plants, and waterfalls.

The Hanging Gardens were supposedly built around 600 BCE, along the banks of the Euphrates River in Babylon. Constructed inside the palace walls, the gardens were built in a series of platforms, or terraces, that created a structure 400 feet long, 400 feet wide, and 380 feet high!

The Hanging Gardens It was a huge and magnificent garden, towering 300 feet above the desert sands It was rumored (слух) that the king King Nebuchadnezzar, ordered the gardens built to honor his queen. The queen was homesick (тосковать по дому) for her land in the mountains. The gardens were designed by the king to make his queen feel loved and welcomed in her new land of Babylon.

The Statue of Zeus at Olympia

The Statue of Zeus at Olympia The Temple of Zeus was completed in 456 BC (before the birth of Christ) до нашей эры. It was 12 meters tall It was destroyed by fire in 500 CE (Current Era) It was built in Olympia to honor Zeus and the Greek Olympic Games. Zeus was the king of the ancient Greek gods. Olympia was the city of the Ancient Greek Olympic Games. But it truly was a magnificent structure.

The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus Храм Артемиды Эфесской

The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus The Temple of Artemis was first built around 800 BC in the ancient Greek city of Ephesus, on the coast of what is now modern day Turkey. The temple was destroyed and rebuilt several times. Each time, it was rebuilt more impressively than the temple before it. The first temple was destroyed around 550 BC in a war. Years later, the temple was burnt down by a man who wanted to be remembered forever. (The town created a law that said anyone who mentioned his name would be put to death immediately. )

The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus In Alexander’s time, the decorated temple was 425 feet long, 225 feet wide, and 60 feet high. 127 columns supported the roof. The temple was destroyed (again) around 200 CE by the Goths. Today, all that remains of this incredible structure is a single column in the middle of a marshy (болотистый) field that marks the spot where the Temple once stood.

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus Галикарнасский мавзолей

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus King Mausolus was a ruler of a small kingdom in Asia Minor. He was married to Artemisia, who loved him dearly. When the king died, his wife decided to build her husband the most magnificent tomb (гробница) in the world. The tomb was called the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus. Today, there is nothing left of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus except a story about a queen who loved her husband dearly.

The Colossus of Rhodes

The Colossus of Rhodes is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. Once, it was part of ancient Greece. Alexander the Great conquered Rhodes (Родос). When Alexander died, his generals fought for control of the island. The statue was 110 feet high and stood on a 50 foot base (основание). Each morning, the sun glittered off the bronze plates that covered the statue. It was quite a sight!

The Colossus of Rhodes Only 56 years after the statue was built, it was fallen down by an earthquake. Many pieces fell into the harbor. Some pieces remained on land, including the statue’s thumb. People travelled great distances to see the huge thumb. They tried to put their arms around it. The thumb was bigger than their arms could stretch.

The Lighthouse at Alexandria

The Lighthouse at Alexandria It was built around 290 BCE on the Island of Pharos in the harbor of Alexandria, Egypt. It was a working lighthouse that helped ships find their way safely into harbor. It was also a tourist attraction.

The Lighthouse at Alexandria In ancient times, visitors could buy food at the observation platform on the first level. Anyone who wished to do could climb nearly to the top. There were not many places in the ancient world that visitors could climb a man-made structure, 300 feet up, to view the sea.

The Lighthouse at Alexandria stood for over 1500 years. Scientists believe an earthquake topped the Lighthouse during the 12 th century CE, about 250 years before Columbus discovered America!