The only survivor on the seven wonders of the ancient world list, the Great Pyramid is the biggest of three pyramids grouped together in the ancient city of Giza, now considered part of Cairo. This pyramid is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. Archaeologists think the pyramid was built around 2650 B.C. as a tomb for a pharaoh named Khufu. While no one knows for sure how long it took to build or how many men built it, estimates range from 14,000 to 360,000 men over 20 years. The pyramid was the world's tallest building for the first four thousand years after it was built.
The ancient Greek temple of Artemis at Ephesus was destroyed in 356 B.C. Record of it exists from the ancient historian Pliny who wrote that it was 377 feet long and 180 feet wide. This is three times the size of the Parthenon, which still stands. Pliny goes on to say that there were 127 ionic columns that supported the structure and they were 60 feet high. Built during the Achaemenid Dynasty of the Persian empire, this temple gave honor to the Greek goddess of hunting and nature. The temple was used as a market and place of worship and housed many works of art and sculptures.
There is no evidence existing today of the hanging gardens, located in an area that is now modern Al Hillah, Iraq. Mentioned by the Greeks and not by the Babylonians, who were responsible for them, many historians debate whether they ever existed at all. To get an idea of what they looked like, think of a man-made mountain of rising terraces that held nothing but flowers and plants. The variety of flora hung over the sides of the terraces, giving the gardens their name. These gardens were allegedly built by Nebuchadnezzar II and are thought to have been destroyed by an earthquake in the first century B.C. The Greeks were especially impressed with the irrigation system that was required to keep the gardens alive and healthy.
The tomb of Maussollos at Halicarnassus is responsible for our modern word "mausoleum" as it was an enormous tomb built to house the Persian King Maussollos and his wife. Designed by Greek architects, and constructed in 353 B.C., this tomb was highly decorated on the outside by many bas-relief sculptures and statuary. It survived until the 14th century, when it was overcome by the last of a series of earthquakes that destroyed its foundation.
This great statue of the King of Gods was as ornate and impressive as the stories of Zeus himself. The Greeks spared little when it came to depicting their most powerful deity. Built in approximately 450 B.C., the statue stood 40 feet tall and had Zeus sitting on a grand throne. Zeus was made from ivory and had gold-plated accents. His throne was cedar and inlaid with jewels. He held a statue of Nike (the goddess of victory) in his right hand and a scepter with an eagle on top in his left. The temple that housed the statue was destroyed in the fifth century and some scholars think the statue went with it. Others believe the statue was carried to Constantinople and destroyed in a fire.
On the tiny Greek island of Rhodes stood an enormous statue 100 feet tall. This statue was of the god Helios (god of the Sun), built in approximately 280 B.C. Helios is the patron god of Rhodes and the statue commemorated a victory Rhodes had defending itself against an invasion in 304 B.C. Those who visited Rhodes were greeted by the statue that was posted in the harbor allegedly on a pedestal. Unfortunately the statue lasted only 54 years. In 226 B.C. it was destroyed by an earthquake.
The lighthouse at Alexandria is thought to have been created for the island of Pharos as a landmark. It stood approximately 450 feet high and was built in the third century B.C. During the day a mirror on top of the lighthouse was used to reflect light, at night a fire burned in its place. The fire could allegedly be seen 35 miles away. This wonder was destroyed by two earthquakes in the thirteen century A.D. Its remains were obliterated in 1480 when a fort was built on its site.
