The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World are simply described as seven famous structures that were built in the ancient times. The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Great Pyramid at Giza, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes, and the Lighthouse of Alexandria. In an article from the Ancient History Encyclopedia, Joshua J. Mark states that “the Seven Wonders were first defined as themata (Greek for things to be seen) by Philo of Byzantium in 225 BCE.”[3] Because the Greeks created the Seven Wonders of the World, most of the structures are from Greek culture. Although the seven wonders of the world were all from ancient times, they are still honored to this day.
The amazing temples, statues, mausoleum, and lighthouse were built only by hand. These wonders show the imagination and the capability the artists, and architects had while building these. Not only did it show the beauty it also showed the destruction because only one of the seven are still standing to this day, no matter if the reason was out of their hands or destroyed for self-recognition.
Great Pyramids of Giza
The last standing Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is the Great Pyramids of Giza located in Egypt. These ancient pyramids were built around 4,500 years ago and were built to endure eternity considering they are still standing says, Brian Handwerk from National Geographic.[1] The purpose of these pyramids was to resemble tombs for the pharaohs in the afterlife. The other pyramids built were semi smaller and built by the Pharaohs son, Khafre and Pharaoh Menkaure. “Scientists today cannot be sure how the pyramids were built. The builders were skilled, who lived in a nearby temporary city.”[1] From the great skill of the past Pharaohs it has allowed us to explore a world that was once alive. In the pyramids are great works of art such as inscriptions, images of ancient famers, drawings and plans. From the art it gives the present a chance to look at how the Ancient people lived.
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Another wonder of the world is the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. However, there is debates if the Gardens ever existed since they are not standing today. A writer from the Ancient History Encyclopedia wrote, “Nebuchadnezzar built the Hanging Gardens for his wife to replicate her lush homeland, who was homesick to help cheer her up.”[5] Although the name is the Hanging Gardens, nothing actually was hanging. The structure consisted of rooftop or terrace gardens. This writer includes archaeological evidence such as finding 25-meter-thick walls near the Euphrates River where the Hanging Gardens were said to be built. [5] Even with possible evidence many people believe it was nonexistent.
The Statue of Zeus
Not only were there many temples dedicated to Zeus, the statue that is considered one of the Seven Wonders is the statue at Olympia. This statue showed the true classical sculptural design. The Olympic games were created and held at this shrine. Bryan Hill a writer for the Ancient Origins website provided information that from the altar where Zeus stood was struck by a thunderbolt that came from the god from his throne.[2] The Temple of Zeus was built by a Greek sculptor and is where the statues of Zeus were housed. This temple was placed between two rivers in Olympia just west of Greece. Later this temple held the Olympic games that started in 776 BC. These games were to be played in honor of Zeus who was “considered the father of the Olympic Games.”[2]This statue and temple was demolished over 800 years later because emperor Theodosius ordered so. “He also banned the Olympic games because of the pagan associations,” says Bryan.[2] The remains of the temple are only fallen columns and the foundation of the temple in Olympia.
The Temple of Artemis
The next wonder of the world is found in present day Turkey but was once known as Ephesus. This grand temple was built for the purpose of to honor the Greek goddess Artemis. Because of the great location of the temple, many visitors were to visit. The author of this article in Ancient History Encyclopedia explains the design as the “temple having 127 columns that stood 60 feet high and made of marble.” [8] Inside this magnificent building were sculptures of warriors, paintings, gilded columns of silver and gold and a statue within the temple. “The Temple of Artemis was set ablaze on July 21, 356 BCE by Herostratus who held nothing personally against Artemis but saw its destruction as a path to personal fame,”[8] which is also stated in the Ancient History Encyclopedia. Any artifacts that were preserved from this Temple are now in the British Museum in London.
Mausoleum of Halicarnassus
Furthermore, the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus was none in the Roman era as a large-scale tomb, which is related to what we think it is in the present day. This tomb was created to house the body of Maussollos the king of Caria. The king’s wife designed this building during her grieving stage and was not bothered with the price. “This Mausoleum was built on a hill that kept watch over Maussollos beloved city,”[7] the author from the Ancient History Encyclopedia of the last two structures stated. In the courtyard were statues of Greek gods and warriors who guarded the building. “In the 13th century the tomb upper portions were damaged by an earthquake. The Knights of St. John used the remainder of it in order to fortify their castle at Bodrum.”[7] From the reconstructing of the new castle there were no evidence of the mausoleum ever existing.
Colossus of Rhodes
This Wonder of the world’s purpose was to reflect and honor Helios, a patron god of Rhodes. A huge statue standing 110 feet high honored Helios that was placed at the entrance to Rhodes harbor. Although the image of Helios differed from the people, “the statue would have likely depicted Helios standing with his legs together, holding a torch in his right hand and a spear in his left hand,” [4] written in the Ancient History Encyclopedia. The statue was finished in 280 BCE. After Rhodes experienced an earthquake the statue broke at the knees and fell to the ground. The statue was never fixed, and the ruins laid among the once standing statue. Eventually the remains were moved to Syria and were sold.
Lighthouse of Alexandria
This structure was the last to be named to the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The lighthouse was said to produce light that was visible from 35 miles away. This lighthouse purpose was to aid sailors off the island of Pharos. The writer of this article described the design, “as a light-colored stone that was reinforced with molten lead that protected the walls from the waves.”[6] Every evening a fire would be lit at the top of the lighthouse and the sun was reflected off the mirror that was also located at the top of the lighthouse. This lighthouse was taken down by two earthquakes that turned the lighthouse into rubble. Some remains were found in the harbor and were used to construct Fort Qaitbey which is built right where the Lighthouse of Alexandria once was.