Sights Around The World
Sights Around The World
Since ancient times, people have put together many seven wonders lists. Examples include the Seven Wonders of the Natural World, the Seven Wonders of the Modern World and the Seven Natural Wonders of the U.S. The content of these lists tends to vary, and none is definitive. The original list of seven wonders is the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, which is made up of a selection of ancient architectural and sculptural accomplishments. The seven wonders that are most widely agreed upon as being in the original list are outlined below.
The temple was a beautiful marble structure, begun about 350 B.C., in honor of the goddess Artemis. The temple, with Ionic columns 60 feet high, was destroyed by invading Goths in A.D. 262. It was located in Ephesus, Turkey.
Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
This famous monument was erected in Bodium, Turkey, by Queen Artemisia in memory of her husband, King Mausolus of Caria in Asia Minor, who died in 353 B.C. Some remains of the structure are in the British Museum. This shrine is the source of the modern word mausoleum, which is a large above-ground tomb.
Colossus at Rhodes
This bronze statue of Helios (Apollo), about 105 feet high, was the work of the sculptor Chares. He worked on the statue for 12 years, finishing it in 280 B.C. It was destroyed during an earthquake in 224 B.C. Rhodes is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea.
Pharos of Alexandria
The seventh wonder was the Pharos (lighthouse) of Alexandria. Sostratus of Cnidus built the Pharos during the third century B.C. on the island of Pharos off the coast of Egypt. It was destroyed by an earthquake in the thirteenth century.