Wonders Of The Ancient World

The Pyramids of Giza

# It is the oldest of the 7 ancient wonders-about 4500 years ago- and the only one that still survives. # It was built as a tomb for the pharaoh Khufu. # It is made of 2 million blocks of huge stones. # It is as tall as a 50-storey building. # It took 1,00,000 men years to build it. # Inside is the preserved body, a mummy, of the king Khufu.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon

# Babylon was the capital of warrior kings, the most famous being King Nebuchadrezzar II. # He reigned in 6 th century B.C. and built these gardens as a gift for his wife. #The gardens were built high off the ground on huge stone terraces. These were covered with sheets of lead, reed and tiles and ample soil to support the tallest of trees. # Water was lifted up to the gardens by a machine operated by slaves. # They were full of exotic plants and trees and also beautiful streams and fountains. # However, the gardens were built with sun-dried bricks which crumble with age. Therefore, with time, the gardens crumbled down.

The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus

# Ephesus was an important trade centre and one of the richest cities of the ancient world. # In 560 B.C., when King Croesus of Lydia conquered Ephesus, he built a beautiful temple dedicated to the Greek Goddess, Artemis. # It was one of the largest Greek temples and it was covered with brightly painted and gilded sculptures. # The whole city of Ephesus loved this temple, but one of its citizens, Herostratus set fire to it because he wanted to be remembered forever. # Though the temple was destroyed, the statue of Artemis remained unharmed. The people thought it was a miracle and appointed Scopas of Paros, a very famous sculptor, to build a new temple. Henceforth, the city prospered. # However, when Ephesus was conquered by the Romans, the temple of Artemis became the temple for the Roman Goddess, Diana. # In 262 A.D., Goths attacked Ephesus and plundered the temple. For many years, people began to carry away the stones from the ruins to build other structures. Then the floods came and whatever was remaining sank into the marsh and disappeared. # In the 19 th century, archaeologists discovered some of the temple’s ruins under 6 m of mud.

The Statue of Zeus at Olympia

# Ancient Greece consisted of many small, independent states. Every four years, all the Greeks gathered at the temple of Olympia to honor Zeus, The Thunderer, by conducting Olympic Games. # In 456 B.C., they decided to build a temple for Zeus and Phidias of Athens was given the task of building the magnificent statue. # So, Zeus’ throne was crafted out of ebony, cedar, gold and precious stones. His huge body was carved out of ivory and his robes and sandals were made of gold. # It remained very popular for the next 800 years but in the 4 th century A.D., the Roman Emperor banned the worship of ancient Gods. The statue was taken to Constantinople and was later destroyed in a fire.

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

# Halicarnassus was the capital of Caria, which was a province of the ancient Persian Empire. # King Mausolus ruled Caria in the 4 th century B.C. After his death, his wife Queen Artemisa decided to build a tomb for him. # The tomb was made of stone and overlooked a harbour. It was as tall as a 15-storey building. # The base of the tomb was rectangular and on top of that were 36 columns which supported a pyramid-like structure. Above this, was a huge figure of Mausolus in a chariot pulled by 4 horses. # Battle and hunting scenes and also stories of Greek mythology were carved and painted on the Mausleum. # The tomb remained undisturbed for 1800 years. However, earthquakes ruined the tomb and was further looted. Later, houses were built on the site.

The Colossus of Rhodes

# In ancient times, the citizens of Rhodes believed that their island was blessed by the Sun God, Helios. In 305 B.C., the island was attacked and the Rhodians fought so bravely that the enemy ran away, leaving behind their weapons. # The people melted down the weapons and asked the sculptor, Charles of Lindos, to make a huge statue of Helios, to pay respect to the God. # It took 12 years to build the 33 metre-tall statue. # However, after 56 years, in 226 B.C., the statue broke at the knee and toppled over in a massive earthquake. # Their religious principles did not allow the restoration of the statue and it remained where it fell for 1000 years. # When the Arabs conquered Rhodes, they broke up the statue and sent the metal to Syria on 900 camels. The metal was melted down to make weapons again.

The Pharos at Alexandria

# Alexander the Great founded the city of Alexandria in 332 B.C., but the ships found it difficult to enter the city’s harbour, as there were many reefs at the entrance. # Therefore, on the island of Pharos, near the harbour, a lighthouse as tall as a 40-storey building was built to mark the harbour. # At the top was a mirror, which was made of polished bronze sheets. This reflected the sun’s rays during the day and light from a small fire at night and guided ships and boats. The light reflected by the mirror could be seen from more than 35 km away. # After the Arabs conquered Egypt, the mirror was brought down by mistake, and never taken up again. The tower tumbled down during an earthquake in the 14 th century A.D.