Thousands of years ago, humans developed and built brilliant and glorious civilizations. They left their mark with majestic and huge architectural works that even today, with modern machines and technology, humans still cannot restore. And among them, there are 7 works considered by most of mankind at that time to be the most outstanding. They are the 7 wonders of the ancient world
The 7 Wonders of the Ancient World was listed by Antipater of Sidon, an ancient Greek poet who lived around the second half of the 2nd century BC. This list is compiled from many similar works by Greek historians and therefore includes only the architectural works of two regions, the Mediterranean and the Middle East (the areas surrounding Greece). Lap). Besides, these 7 wonders only exist at the same time for a very short period of time, less than 60 years. And here is the list of 7 wonders of the ancient world:
1. Statue of Zeus in Olympia
The statue of Zeus in Olympia was built by the famous ancient sculptor Phidias and completed around 435 BC. According to Greek mythology, Zeus was the king of the gods, the holder of supreme power and therefore highly revered. The statue is more than 12 meters high (m), placed on a stone platform made of marble about 1m high. There is a figure sitting on a throne, in one hand Zeus holds a metal scepter, on top is "the eagle of Zeus", symbolizing the supreme deity among the gods. In the other hand is a statue of Nike - the god of victory in Greek mythology. The statue of Zeus is made of ivory, covered with gold plates. The throne is also made of ivory, gold, precious stones and cedar wood. There is currently no clear explanation as to why the statue was destroyed. But according to some ancient records, the statue was moved to Constantinople (now Istanbul of Turkey) and burned with a great fire in 475 AD (AD).
2. Temple of the goddess Artemis in Ephesus
Temple of the goddess Artemis is a work designed and built by the Greek architect Chersiphron and his son Metagenes. This work was created to honor Artemis - the daughter of Zeus and the god of hunting and virginity. Construction of the temple began around 550 BC, underwent several expansions and repairs, and ended in 430 BC. At this time, the architecture has a length of about 115m, a width of about 55m with 127 stone pillars. In 356 BC, the temple was burned down by Herostratus – a famed Greek man who wanted to be famous and then rebuilt on the old ground in 323 BC. However, in AD 262, this structure was burned again after a raid by the Goths (an Indo-European tribe). Currently, only the foundation and some other parts of the 2nd temple remain.
3. The Statue of the Sun in Rhodes
The Rhodes Statue of the Sun, also known as the Colossus of Rhodes, is a bronze statue built by the people of the island of Rhodes to honor Helios - the Greek god of the sun and man. protect this island. The statue was built between 292 - 280 BC and is about 34m high, equivalent to the height from the heel to the top of the head of the Statue of Liberty in the United States. However, in 226 BC, the Rhodes Island earthquake broke the statue's knee and caused it to collapse. The wreckage was scattered around the city for more than eight centuries until it was sold by Arab invaders to an Edessa merchant (now Urfa city in the Turkish province of Şanlıurfa). This man melted them into bronze plates and transported them back to his homeland.
4. Hanging Gardens of Babylon in Babylon
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, also known as the Hanging Gardens of Semiramys, is believed to have been built by King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon (present-day Iraq) around 600 BC. According to recorded descriptions, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon were created for the purpose of entertaining Queen Amyitis. Queen Amyitis was the daughter of Cyaraxes, king of the Media Empire located in present-day northwestern Iran. Being used to the green land and majestic mountains, Queen Amyitis thought that the flat and barren land of Babylon was really boring. So to please his wife, the emperor Nebuchadnezzar II built a structure to recreate her hometown - the Hanging Gardens of Babylon - on the roofs. And this work is not actually a garden hanging on ropes as many people think. The word "hang" here is due to a misunderstanding of the Greek word "krematos" or the Latin "pensilis" which means both "hanging" and protruding. Therefore, it can be understood that the name of the project is "the garden protruding from the roof". The structure is said to have been badly damaged in the 2nd century BC. Then a large part of the ruins were also destroyed during the war between the US and Iraq.
5. Great Pyramid of Giza at the Giza Tomb
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the only intact structure in the list of 7 wonders of the ancient world. This is also the "oldest" structure, built around the 26th century BC. This pyramid is located in the complex of Giza tombs including 3 main pyramids: Great Pyramid of Giza (also known as Khufu pyramid or Cheops pyramid), Khafre pyramid and Menkaure pyramid . Besides, there are some small pyramids, satellite works and the famous Sphinx statue.
6. Mausolus' Tomb at Halicarnassus
The Tomb of Mausolus, also known as the Mausoleum of Maussollos or the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, is a tomb built around 353 – 350 BC. The tomb is buried Mausolus - king of a small kingdom of the Persian Empire with his wife and sister, Artemisia. This 45m high structure was built in Halicarnassus, now the Turkish city of Bodrum. Mausolus survived through the centuries, even when the city of Halicarnassus was attacked and reduced to ruins, the tomb was still intact. However, by the 15th century AD, a series of earthquakes devastated the structure, and by 1404 what remained of the most famous mausoleum in history was only the foundation.
7. Alexandria Lighthouse in Pharos
Lighthouse of Alexandria is an architecture located on the island of Pharos in the city of Alexandria, Egypt. Built around 201 BC, this work has a height of 135m and has held the title of the second tallest man-made structure in the world (after the Great Pyramid of Giza) for many years. Its architecture consists of 3 floors, the bottom floor is square, the middle is octagonal, and the top floor is circular with a statue of Poseidon - the god of the sea in Greek mythology - located at the top. Besides, on the top of the lighthouse there is a mirror to reflect sunlight during the day and a torch to light the fire at night. The lighthouse of Alexandria stopped working and officially collapsed after two earthquakes in 1303 and 1323.
Above is some information about the top 7 wonders of the ancient world that we want to share with our readers. Although there are only rudimentary tools and techniques, ancient people have created great works, some of which even now cannot be restored. Thereby we also understand somewhat about the brilliant, glorious and brilliant civilizations that once existed on this Earth.
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