Free Essays on 7 Wonders

SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD In the ancient world there were seven great man-made structures for travelers to see on a world tour. Lists of the so-called seven wonders of the world sometimes varied. The following list, dating from about the 6th century AD, was a commonly used and standard one: (1) the pyramids of Egypt; (2) the Hanging Gardens of Babylon; (3) the statue of Zeus at Olympia; (4) the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus; (5) the temple of Artemis (Diana) at Ephesus; (6) the Colossus of Rhodes; and (7) the Pharos (lighthouse) of Alexandria. Greek colonists at Ephesus, in Asia Minor, built the famous temple of Artemis. The early settlers found the Asian inhabitants worshiping a many-breasted nature goddess whom they identified with their Artemis (called Diana by the Romans). They raised a shrine to her, which was rebuilt and enlarged from time to time. The fourth temple was the one regarded as the wonder of the world. Dedicated about 430 BC, it is said to have been built by contributions from all the great cities of Asia and to have taken 120 years to complete. This great temple was set on fire in 356 BC on the night Alexander the Great was born, according to tradition. The crime was committed by one Herostratus merely that his name might be remembered in after ages. The statue of Olympian Zeus was erected at Olympia, in the Peloponnesus of Greece, by the great sculptor Phidias in the 5th century BC. It was a towering structure of ivory and gold, 40 feet high, majestic and beautiful. After about 10 centuries of existence the statue was destroyed. Our only idea of it is gained from coins of Elis, which are thought to bear copies of the original. The Colossus of Rhodes was a great bronze statue, erected in about 280 BC by the citizens of Rhodes, capital of the Greek island of the same name. It represented their sun-god Helios and was said to be 105 feet high. According to legend, it straddled the harbor entrance, b... Free Essays on 7 Wonders Free Essays on 7 Wonders SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD In the ancient world there were seven great man-made structures for travelers to see on a world tour. Lists of the so-called seven wonders of the world sometimes varied. The following list, dating from about the 6th century AD, was a commonly used and standard one: (1) the pyramids of Egypt; (2) the Hanging Gardens of Babylon; (3) the statue of Zeus at Olympia; (4) the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus; (5) the temple of Artemis (Diana) at Ephesus; (6) the Colossus of Rhodes; and (7) the Pharos (lighthouse) of Alexandria. Greek colonists at Ephesus, in Asia Minor, built the famous temple of Artemis. The early settlers found the Asian inhabitants worshiping a many-breasted nature goddess whom they identified with their Artemis (called Diana by the Romans). They raised a shrine to her, which was rebuilt and enlarged from time to time. The fourth temple was the one regarded as the wonder of the world. Dedicated about 430 BC, it is said to have been built by contributions from all the great cities of Asia and to have taken 120 years to complete. This great temple was set on fire in 356 BC on the night Alexander the Great was born, according to tradition. The crime was committed by one Herostratus merely that his name might be remembered in after ages. The statue of Olympian Zeus was erected at Olympia, in the Peloponnesus of Greece, by the great sculptor Phidias in the 5th century BC. It was a towering structure of ivory and gold, 40 feet high, majestic and beautiful. After about 10 centuries of existence the statue was destroyed. Our only idea of it is gained from coins of Elis, which are thought to bear copies of the original. The Colossus of Rhodes was a great bronze statue, erected in about 280 BC by the citizens of Rhodes, capital of the Greek island of the same name. It represented their sun-god Helios and was said to be 105 feet high. According to legend, it straddled the harbor entrance, b... Free Essays on 7 Wonders 1. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon – Located approximately 50km south of Baghdad, Iraq on the east bank of the Euphrates River. King Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BC), grandson of the famous King Hammurabi, is credited to have commissioned the construction of the gardens. Although no tablets were found in Babylon referring to the Gardens, accountings from the ancient Greek historian, Strabo, state that the â€Å"The Garden is quadrangular, and each side is four plethra long. It consists of arched vaults which are located on checkered cube-like foundations.. The ascent of the uppermost terrace-roofs is made by a stairway..† 2. The Great Pyramid of Giza – The only one of the Seven Wonders still left standing to this day, it is also the oldest of the 7 Ancient Wonders. Located in the city Giza, a necropolis of ancient Memphis, which is now part of Cairo, Egypt. This impressive monument was commissioned by Pharaoh Khufu of the Fourth Dynasty around 2560 BC, to serve as his final resting place. The great pyramid was 145.75 meters tall when constructed, but over the course of time has lost nearly 10 meters. The entrance is located on the North side of the pyramid, and once inside there is a series of passageways and galleries that lead to the Kings burial chamber. The structure is comprised of some 2 million blocks of stone, each weighing more than 2 tons, with the King’s burial chamber and sarcophagus made out of red granite. 3. The Statue of Zeus at Olympia – The god of gods to the ancient Greeks and Egyptians. It was located in the ancient town of Olympia, about 150 km west of Athens, in Greece. The original temple housing the massive statue was constructed around 450 BC, designed by architect Libon. The statue itself was created by the Athenian sculptor Pheidias. Constructed out of ivory sections, the massive statue was 45 feet tall, holding victory in his right hand, and his sceptor in his left. Closed by the Roman...