- The Great Wall of China, which is truly an incredible object, on which a huge amount of funds, materials, and human lives were spent.
The design, unprecedented in its size, is a delight when we can only think about the then state of the art. Unfortunately, it was not included in the list, due to its young age, but it truly inspires in scale no less than the pyramids of Chiops.
City of Petra
- The city of Petra - this object was also rightfully included in the new seven wonders of the world, as it is a large city, completely carved into the mountains.
The craftsmanship of the workers is amazing even by modern standards, and if we recall again that this city is several thousand years old, then we can say with determination that this is true magic.
Sculpture of Christ
- The sculpture of Christ - popular to us from Brazilian television series, the highest structure crowning the elevation in Rio. The height of the statue is 38m, the pedestal is 8m, the weight of the statue is 1145 tons, the arm span is 30m.
Machu Picchu
– Machu Picchu is an Indian city that has survived to this day, and is a monument of the old Inca civilization. The new seven wonders of the world put it in the same place with the Chinese wall and the Egyptian pyramids, there is something to see.
Pyramid of Chichen Itza
- Chichen Itza - these pyramids, which have become a monument to the second majestic civilization - the Maya. Here are preserved the oldest statues, buildings, inventions, in fact, in perfect condition, which have survived to this day. Even separate pieces of furniture were found here.
Roman Coliseum
- The Roman Colosseum is a place where gladiator fights took place, soaked in blood and terrible stories, the last breaths of people and animals. The new wonders of the world include the Colosseum, not only because of its beauty, but because of the history, deeds in ancient works, narratives and stories.
Taj Mahal
- Taj Mahal - Covered with a romantic halo, the temple, built in memory of one of the most popular love stories in the world, is considered the best example of Mughal architecture, combining elements of Indian, Persian and Islamic styles of architecture.
Egyptian pyramids
- The Egyptian pyramids - they were included in the new eight wonders of the world, as the Egyptians were offended by the fact that their miracle was not included in the list of the best. It was decided to respect the request, as the design deserves admiration.
Many things familiar to you and me are in one way or another connected with the number 7.
These are the seven days of the week, seven notes, seven deadly sins, seven sacred church sacraments, “flower - seven-flower”, Snow White and the seven dwarfs, and many others. The number 7 in many nations is considered symbolic, happy. In ancient civilizations (Babylonian, Ancient Greek), it denoted the completeness, perfection of the world, the sum of its main components (4 parts of the world and the basis of life in the person of parents and a child). The city of Rome was built on 7 hills. To describe all such examples, you need to spend a lot of time, so let's move on to describing the history of occurrence 7 Wonders of the World.
The first mention of the wonders of the world appeared in Ancient Greece. So the historian and philosopher Herodotus, who lived in the 5th century. BC, listed 3 wonders of the world:
1) Temple of the goddess Hera on the island of Samos;
2) Aqueduct delivering water through a system of tunnels (Samos island);
3) A dam protecting the port from sea storms (Samos Island).
Since then, people have increasingly begun to describe the most grandiose and significant architectural buildings, so the list of Herodotus was completely updated and expanded two centuries later.
A writer from the city of Sidon (Phoenicia) Antipater, in the third century BC, became the author of a new list 7 Wonders of the World the ancient world, which has reached our time practically unchanged. Traveling to different countries, he left reviews about each of them, paying special attention to the most important architectural monuments. He could tell us only about those architectural masterpieces that were not destroyed by natural disasters or military operations, otherwise the list of wonders of the world could become much more voluminous. Also in the classical interpretation of the list 7 Wonders of the World, did not include structures built by man later than the 3rd century BC.
So, such grandiose man-made architectural projects as: tower of babel, walls of the city of Babylon, Library of Alexandria, Cyrus Palace in Persepolis, athenian acropolis with a statue of the goddess Athena, temple of king solomon, Roman Colosseum, Capitol and many others.
Let's go to the description miracles Sveta in the classic chronological version.
1) The Pyramid of Cheops, built by the Egyptians around 2550 BC. AD. Located in the Giza Valley (Egypt), and intended as a tomb for the pharaoh Cheops. This is one of seven wonders of the world which has survived to our time almost in its original form and is very popular with tourists from all over the world.
2) Hanging Gardens of Babylon, were built around 600 BC. AD in the city of Babylon, (modern Iraq). The gardens were presented as a gift to the wife of King Nebuchadnezzar II. This architectural monument has not survived to this day, as it was destroyed by an earthquake 200 years after construction.
3) Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, built in 550 BC. AD Greeks, Lydians and Persians near the city of Ephesus (Türkiye). This temple was built in honor of the ancient Greek goddess Artemis. The Temple of Artemis was plundered and destroyed 2 times (first by Herostratus in 370 BC, and then by the tribes of the Goths in the 3rd century AD). As a result, the temple was completely destroyed by fire.
4) Statue of Zeus, created by the ancient Greek sculptor Phidias in 435 BC. was originally installed in Olympia (Greece), where the Olympic Games were held every 4 years, in the temple of Zeus. The god Zeus is depicted as a statue seated on a throne, with a scepter, on which the Eagle, the envoy of Zeus, is located. Impressive in its size, execution and cost, the temple statue was destroyed during a fire that occurred at the Hippodrome of the city of Constantinople in the 5th century AD.
5) mausoleum in Halicarnassus erected jointly by Carian, Persian and Greek architects in 351 BC. under the direction of the architect Pytheas. The mausoleum was the tomb of the ruler of Caria - King Mausolus and his wife, Artemisia, and was located near the city of Halicarnassus (Turkey). Only architectural fragments and the foundation of the mausoleum, destroyed in 1494 by a strong earthquake, have survived to this day. Miraculously, 2 statues survived - King Masol and Queen Artemisia. They are currently kept in the London British Museum.
6) The Colossus of Rhodes a huge 18 meter statue in a bronze case, dedicated to the sun god Helios, in honor of the victory of the inhabitants of the island of Rhodes (Greece) over the troops of Dimetrius Poliokret in 304 BC. The work was completed in 280 BC. The statue stood for a little over 66 years, after which, during an earthquake, several elements of the statue fell off. In the 7th century AD the bronze body of the statue was completely dismantled.
7) Alexandrian lighthouse, erected in the III century. BC. by order of Alexander the Great. The lighthouse was located on the island of Pharos, near the newly built city of Alexandria (Egypt). It was a grandiose architectural structure over 130 meters high. It was crowned with a statue of the god Zeus. The lighthouse allowed navigation not only in the daytime, but also at night. From the name of the island on which it was located (Pharos) in the 19th century. were named lighting devices for cars - headlights. Having stood for more than a millennium, the lighthouse nevertheless fell under the pressure of the elements. In 783 AD The lighthouse of Alexandria was destroyed by a strong earthquake. And in its place in the 15th century. The Turks built a fortress that has survived to this day.
About the legendary 7 wonders of the world - the greatest creations of mankind - everyone definitely heard in childhood, even if not everyone can remember them in order. And although most of the monuments from the history textbook can no longer be seen, people managed to compose many other, alternative ones to the delight of tourists. Together with the service for the selection of cheap air tickets, we have prepared for you a list of outstanding attractions that have survived to this day.
The list of the seven ancient wonders of the world includes the most famous art monuments of the Ancient World. For beauty, uniqueness and technical complexity, they received the "title" of miracles. The list has changed over time, but the number of miracles included in it has remained unchanged.
The Pyramid of Cheops- the most ancient, the first wonder of the world and the only one that has survived to this day. Part of the pyramid complex at Giza - the main attraction of Egypt. The Pyramid of Cheops is the largest pyramid in Egypt. Previously, its height was about 146 meters, and today it is about 138 meters. The date of the beginning of construction is somewhere around 2600 BC, although this is inaccurate and disputed by many scholars. You can get inside the artificial mountain through a natural entrance, located at a height of about 15 meters, or through an artificial one, which was broken in 820.
The legendary Babylonian Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the second wonder of the world, supposedly existed from the end of the 7th century BC to the 1st century BC. Unfortunately, this amazing architectural structure did not survive to this day, but the memory of it has survived. According to legend, the unique hanging gardens were a beautiful confession of their feelings to King Nebuchadnezzar II to his wife Amitis. The attraction is located not far from Baghdad, and today its stone ruins can impress a simple tourist except for their scale. However, history testifies that the structure was one of the most beautiful creations of mankind.
Temple statue of Zeus at Olympia, reaching a height of about 12-17 meters along with a pedestal, was made of ivory, ebony and gold, stood for about nine centuries: from 432 BC to the 5th century, and, unfortunately, burned down in a fire. The statue of Zeus at Olympia was created by the Greek sculptor Phidias in what is now Greece. This place was not chosen by chance - it was in Olympia, in the temple of Zeus, that the Olympic Games were held annually.
Temple of Artemis at Ephesus was built in the Greek city of Ephesus in what is now Turkey in the 5th century BC. A distinctive feature of the temple from other ancient wonders of the world is that it was partially preserved - the ruins of the temple stand to this day. According to ancient Greek belief, Artemis was the goddess of hunting and fertility, the patroness of all life on earth.
The fifth wonder of the world is mausoleum in Halicarnassus. If you want to visit this historical area, go to the Turkish resort city of Bodrum. It was there that scientists discovered the ruins of the wonder of the world - the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. The building was a ziggurat, that is, at the same time a tomb, a sanctuary, and a monument. It should be noted that the name "mausoleum" comes from the name of the imperious and cruel ruler of Caria - Mausolus. The mausoleum was destroyed by an earthquake, then partially dismantled for building materials.
Earthquakes caused the death of two more ancient wonders: the bronze statue of the Colossus on the island of Rhodes (it stood for only 65 years, destroyed in the same III century BC) and the Lighthouse of Alexandria in Egypt (the seventh wonder of the world, collapsed in the XIV century).
New seven wonders of the world
The list of new wonders of the world was specially created by the non-profit foundation The New 7 Wonders of the world based on an international vote. The selection of new seven wonders of the world from the famous architectural structures of the world took place via SMS, telephone or the Internet. In total, more than 100 million people around the world took part in the selection of new wonders of the world. The result was announced on July 7, 2007 in Lisbon, Portugal.
The great Wall of China. The largest monument of architecture, passing through China for 8851.8 kilometers. The grandiose construction of the Great Wall of China has no equal in the history of world architecture. From its highest points you can admire a breathtaking panorama. There has long been a myth that the Great Wall is the only structure that can be seen from space. However, this turned out to be just a delusion. When American astronauts said they couldn't detect it from space, many in China chalked it up to the fact that the astronauts were foreigners. But later, both the first Chinese astronaut Yang Liwei and other Chinese astronauts confirmed the disappointing observations of the Americans.
The most popular sections of the wall are located in relative proximity to Beijing. They can be reached directly from Beijing Airport - take the subway and get to the Dongzhimen station. From there on weekends at 07.00 and 08.30 bus number 867 leaves for the wall. It spends 2-2.5 hours on the road and leaves back for Beijing at 14.00 and 16.00. In addition, bus No. 877 to Badaling departs from Deshengmen Capital Bus Station at 06:00 am. You can also get here by the Beijing Tourist Hub tourist bus, plying from the southern part of Tiananmen Square. A ticket costs 100 yuan, which is about 5,343 tenge, children up to 120 centimeters tall travel for free.
As with all attractions in Rome, the line to the Colosseum often exceeds even the wildest assumptions. However, there are a few "tricks" here that will help to avoid it. A guaranteed trick is to buy a single entrance ticket Colosseum + Palatine + Roman Forum for 12 euros, which is valid for 2 days. Every half an hour there are organized tours of the Colosseum in the main European languages. The cost is 6 euros per person. The guides are all entirely with historical and archaeological education, and you can learn a lot of interesting things.
The Colosseum opens at 09.00, closes - depending on the season, an hour before sunset. From March 30 to August 31, the Colosseum closes at 19.15, from September 1 to September 30 - at 19.00, from October 1 to October 30 - at 18.30, from October 31 to February 15 - at 16.30, from February 16 to March 15 - at 17.00.
One of the most famous statues in the world and definitely the most recognizable in Brazil -. Installed on Mount Corcovado at an altitude of more than 700 meters, with outstretched arms in a blessing gesture, it looks at the huge city below it. The statue of Christ in Rio de Janeiro, due to its fame, attracts millions of tourists to Mount Corcovado. From its height, a beautiful view of the ten-millionth city with its bays, beaches, the Maracanã stadium opens up.
Lost in the desert in Jordan Petra - the capital of the ancient kingdoms of Idumea and Nabatea - opened to Europeans only in the XIX century. The main attractions of Petra, the "stone city", are the crypts carved into the rocks of red sandstone and the rock temple of El Deir.
By Bus: Jett operates daily Amman-Petra bus services from Abdali Bus Station. Departure - at 06.30, travel time - about 3.5 hours, ticket price - 11 dinars, which is about 5,705 tenge one way. The return bus from Petra leaves at 17.00.
By minibus: a minibus ride from Wadi Rum takes about 1.5 hours and costs 7 dinars (3,000 tenge). The minibus usually leaves at 08.30, but the schedule is subject to change on any day. Therefore, it is necessary to agree in advance. Shuttle buses from Amman depart from the Wihdat bus station. On the road - about 3 hours, ticket price - 5 dinars (2,751 tenge). In some cases, the driver may ask you to pay separately for luggage.
Taxi: Taxi, although more expensive, is much more comfortable. A trip from Amman to Petra and back will cost about 75-85 dinars (40,000-45,000 tenge), including waiting for the driver. Travel from Aqaba - 55 dinars one way, approximately 28,631 tenge. On the way from Petra to Aqaba, you can visit the Wadi Rum desert to enjoy unique landscapes that are not like anywhere else on the planet.
Important! You should always agree on the cost of the trip in advance, if you wish, you can save a lot: bargain with the driver or find fellow travelers and share all the expenses with them.
The pearl of Muslim architectural art in India - mausoleum-mosque Taj Mahal in Agra, built in the 17th century by the will of Padishah Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth. It is not surprising that today the Taj Mahal is considered not only an outstanding architectural and spiritual monument, but also a symbol of love. Every year the marble complex becomes a place of pilgrimage for millions of people from all over the world.
The Taj Mahal is located in the city of Agra (200 kilometers from Delhi). You can get there by any train that goes to Calcutta, Mumbai and Gwalior (they all go through Agra), travel time is 2-3 hours. From Agra to the mausoleum - by rickshaw or taxi.
Opening hours: the mausoleum is open daily, except Sunday, during daylight hours.
Entrance: for foreigners - 1,000 rupees (4,952 tenge) for citizens of India - 650 rupees (3,301 tenge).
Lost Inca City of Machu Picchu located in present-day Peru. This sixth new wonder of the world was created as a sacred mountain retreat during the Inca rule of Pachacutec in the middle of the 15th century. However, the highland city remained inhabited for less than a century - until the invasion of the Spaniards, who, however, never reached it. The worldwide discovery of the Inca "city among the clouds" took place only in 1911. Many mysteries of Machu Picchu have remained unsolved, and they still haunt researchers.
Everyone has heard about the wonders of the world, but confusion often arises with what exactly they consider to be such. Often, this list includes those buildings and monuments that, of course, have great historical and cultural value, but are not included in the official list. In addition, in 2007, new "wonders" were chosen in Portugal, so we can say that there are already more than seven of them. All of them have made a huge contribution to the culture of mankind. About the seven wonders of the world, Wikipedia and other encyclopedias write in great detail. Let's look at a brief description of each.
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The wonders of the Ancient World are studied at school in history lessons. It included those structures that were created before our era. None of them have survived to this day, except for the pyramids of Cheops in. These include:
- Pyramid of Cheops.
- Statue of Zeus at Olympia.
- Colossus of Rhodes.
- Alexandrian lighthouse.
Pyramid of Cheops and Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
Both structures belong to the legendary tombs, but the time of their construction is very different.
Interestingly, the pyramid of Cheops - the oldest wonder in the world and, at the same time, the only one that has survived to this day. It was created approximately two thousand years BC. e., and there are still disputes about the mysteries of its construction and sometimes absolutely incredible theories are put forward. For example, the shape of the location of the pyramids exactly repeats the location of the stars in the constellation Orion, so some consider the pyramids a gift from alien civilizations. Every year, thousands of tourists from all over the world come to see them. Indeed, the building is striking once and for all.
This building, like all the mausoleums built later, was named after King Mausolus, who ordered, after his death, to erect a monument similar to the pyramids of Egypt, and glorifying the king himself and his wife. The building was not only a tomb, but also a temple. On the first tier the king rested, and on the second it was possible to hold services. Both the statues of the gods and the statues of Mausolus himself and his wife Artemisia were installed in the mausoleum. The statues of the royal couple have survived to this day, you can find their photos and even look at them in the British Museum.
The gardens got their name from the legendary Queen Semiramis, but, oddly enough, she has nothing to do with them. Two centuries after her death, the Babylonian king decided to marry the daughter of the king of Media - a country immersed in gardens and greenery. Babylon stood in the desert, and in order to impress the bride, the ruler ordered the creation of gardens of unprecedented beauty. Pots with plants bloomed so luxuriantly that they almost hid the building on the walls of which they were located, and seemed to hang in the air. The building looked especially majestic in the middle of a barren desert, when the traveler saw a magical garden in the endless sands, symbolizing the greatness of Babylon and its king.
supreme greek god reached the height of a five-story building, to work on it, the architect Phidias demanded the creation of a workshop that repeats the temple in which the statue was installed. At the same time, Zeus, sitting on the throne, seemed to “not fit” into the temple, if the statue could stand up, it would break the vault. Thus, the greatness of God was emphasized.
Materials were also selected appropriate: ivory and gold. Interesting: Phidias in those distant times, when physics had not yet reached its peak, managed to choose the material and location of the statue in such a way that it seemed that the light falling on it was reflected, and it seemed to glow from within. After the establishment of Christianity and the closure of pagan temples, Zeus was transported to Constantinople, where, unfortunately, he burned down.
Its significance was great, the building was used not only for religious ceremonies, but also for public meetings and even trade. The best sculptors and architects worked on the building, the building was striking in its beauty and majesty. It is also famous for the fact that it was burned by the hot-tempered youth Herostratus, who thus decided to leave his name in history. It is worth noting that he really succeeded. Fortunately, the temple has been restored.
The Colossus of Rhodes
The colossus with feet of clay collapsed seventy years after its construction, but it rightfully occupies a place among the wonders of the world. There are disputes about its height, indicate sizes from forty to sixty meters. There is a legend that ships easily sailed between his legs, although this theory is now controversial. According to the descriptions found, the colossus could not be in the port, but on land, in the city of Rhodes. It was erected as a gratitude to the god Helios for the fact that he defended the city from enemy troops who left after a year of siege. Interestingly, the chief sculptor of the colossus committed suicide, as he borrowed a huge amount to complete his creation, which he was unable to return.
Alexandrian lighthouse
Lighthouse of Alexandria - this structure saved the life of more than one ship, since its light spread for sixty kilometers. Built among reefs and rocks, the lighthouse, one hundred and thirty-five meters high, pointed the way to a life-saving bay in one of the most dangerous places in the sea. According to the surviving descriptions, the sculptures inside the lighthouse were very interesting:
- One of them pointed to the position of the sun all day, and at night her hand dropped.
- The other was set up like a clock, striking the hour every sixty minutes.
- The third always pointed with her hand in the direction the wind was blowing, and thus was used as a weather vane.
To perpetuate his name, the sculptor, who was required to glorify the king, went to the trick - he carved his name on a stone, covered it with plaster and wrote the name of the king. Centuries later, the plaster crumbled, and the name of the architect, Sostratus of Knidos, has come down to us.
Last week, I went to visit my mother, and found my old children's encyclopedia "7 Wonders of the World" with her, leafed through with nostalgia, and eventually decided to make a post about the wonders of the world, because today there are much more than 7 wonders of the world.
To begin with, I propose to recall these "7 wonders" of antiquity.
The only miracle that has survived to this day. Construction, which lasted twenty years, began around 2560 BC. e. Excavation data from January 2010 support the theory that the pyramids were built by civilian workers. Up to 10 thousand people were employed at the construction site at the same time, while the workers worked in shifts of three months. It is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids of the Giza necropolis.
Initially, the pyramid of Cheops rose to 147 meters, but due to the advance of the sands, its height decreased to 137 meters.
The pyramid of Cheops consists of 2,300,000 cubic limestone blocks with smoothly polished sides. Each block weighs an average of 2.5 tons, and the heaviest - 15 tons, the total weight of the pyramid is 5.7 million tons.
Confirmation of the inexplicably high knowledge of the Egyptians in the field of astronomy and civil engineering is the location of the Cheops pyramid in relation to the cardinal points: the pyramid almost unmistakably points to the true north. As a result of the most accurate measurements taken in 1925, an incredible fact was established: the error in its position is only 3 minutes 6 seconds.
The area of the base of the pyramid is comparable to the area of 10 football fields.
You can talk for a long time about the pyramids shrouded in myths and legends, their labyrinths and traps, mummies and treasures, but let's leave it to the Egyptologists. For us, the pyramid of Cheops is one of the greatest structures of mankind throughout its existence and, of course, the only First Wonder of the World that has survived from the depths of centuries.
Hanging Gardens of Babylon (Babylon)
The city ceased to exist long ago, but even today the ruins testify to its grandeur. In the 7th century BC. Babylon was the largest and richest city of the Ancient East. There were many amazing buildings in Babylon, but the hanging gardens of the royal palace were most striking - gardens that have become a legend.
the famous "hanging gardens" were created not by Semiramis and not even during her reign, but later, in honor of another - not legendary - woman. They were built by order of King Nebuchadnezzar for his beloved wife Amitis, the Median princess, who yearned for the green hills of Media in dusty Babylon.
This king, who destroyed city after city and even entire states, built a lot in Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar turned the capital into an impregnable stronghold and surrounded himself with luxury, unparalleled even in those days.
The design of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon was a pyramid with a base (43x35 meters), which consisted of four tiers, mounted on twenty-five-meter columns. The surface of each tier was covered with a layer of reeds (reeds), stone blocks fastened with gypsum and lead plates, on which a thick layer of fertile soil was poured. All these measures helped to preserve water for plants for as long as possible, which was not at all plentiful in Babylon.
The height of the structure was almost thirty meters! Trees, flowers, soil - all this was brought in carts pulled by oxen. Water was supplied through pipes from the Euphrates River. For this, hundreds of slaves turned a huge wheel installed in one of the towers around the clock.
Zeus statue in Olympia
The statue of Olympian Zeus is the work of Phidias. An outstanding work of ancient sculpture, one of the seven wonders of the world. She was in the temple of Olympian Zeus, in Olympia, a city in the region of Elis. The construction of the temple took about 10 years. But the statue of Zeus did not appear in it immediately. The Greeks decided to invite the famous Athenian sculptor Phidias to create a statue of Zeus.
Ancient Roman sculpture "Seated Zeus", Phidias type. The Hermitage was covered with gold on a cape that covered part of Zeus's body, a scepter with an eagle, which he held in his left hand, a statue of the goddess of victory - Nike, which he held in his right hand, and a wreath of olive branches on Zeus's head. Zeus's feet rested on a bench supported by two lions. The reliefs of the throne glorified, first of all, Zeus himself. Four dancing Nikes were depicted on the legs of the throne. Also depicted were centaurs, lapiths, the exploits of Theseus and Hercules, frescoes depicting the battle of the Greeks with the Amazons. The base of the statue was 6 meters wide and 1 meter high. The height of the entire statue, together with the pedestal, was, according to various sources, from 12 to 17 meters. Zeus's eyes were the size of a grown man's fist.
Temple of Artemis of Ephesus (Ephesus)
A few hundred years before our era, when Ephesus was at the zenith of its glory, the inhabitants decided to build a large temple. By that time, the city was already about 600 years old, it was rich and powerful, it grew and prospered under the auspices of the goddess Artemis, the sister of Apollo and the daughter of Zeus - known in Roman mythology as Diana the huntress. Artemis was also considered the goddess of the moon and helped women in childbirth.
A place for a new, majestic and grandiose temple in the part of the goddess was chosen as a holy place - even in ancient times religious rituals took place there. The townspeople decided not to spare either money or time, and besides, they attracted wealthy construction sponsors from other regions of the country.
The finished temple was magnificent, and constantly decorated with new decorative elements - after all, Ephesus was a very rich city. Historical data are contradictory, but it is mentioned that there were many bronze statues in the temple, the interior was decorated with gold and silver, the statue of the goddess herself was made of ivory and gold, and trimmed with ebony.
It is noteworthy that in those days the temple was not only a religious building, but also a financial and business center. The souvenir business also flourished: not far from the temple, original souvenirs were successfully sold - its reduced copies. Scientists have not yet figured out which temple was considered a wonder of the world - rebuilt or burned by Herostratus
mausoleum in Halicarnassus
The Mausoleum in Halicarnassus is a wonderful monument of ancient Greek architectural art, which entered the history of ancient culture as one of the seven wonders of the Ancient World. Our contemporaries believe that the mausoleum is the tomb of the great leaders.
The builders placed the tomb in the periptera - a building framed by a colonnade of 11-meter columns. It took 36 columns to support the roof of the mausoleum. The gaps between the columns were filled with various statues of mythological figures, and the roof looked like a stepped pyramid with 24 steps. Its crown was a marble quadriga, that is, an ancient chariot with four horses harnessed to it. Huge statues of Mausolus and Artemisia, who played the role of drivers, were placed in the chariot. This magnificent sculpture reached a height of 6 m. In the room of the tomb there were marble sarcophagi intended for the royal couple. The foot of the mausoleum was decorated with sculptures of horsemen and marble lions.
In general, the history of the Halicarnassus mausoleum is rich in events. At one time, he survived the conquest of the city by Alexander the Great, and even withstood the attack of pirates who coveted Halicarnassus at the beginning of the 1st century. However, after the Maltese attacked the mausoleum and took stone and marble slabs from it, only the foundation remained of the majestic structure.
Colossus of Rhodes (Rhodes)
The colossus was a giant statue that stood in a port city on Rhodes, an island in the Aegean Sea, off the coast of modern Turkey. In ancient times, the people of Rhodes wanted to be independent merchants.
The colossus grew on the shore of the harbor on an artificial hill lined with white marble. For twelve years, no one saw the statue, because as soon as another belt of bronze sheets was attached to the frame, the embankment surrounding the colossus was poured in, so that it would be more convenient for the craftsmen to climb up. And only when the mound was removed, the Rhodians saw their patron god, whose head was decorated with a radiant crown.
The sparkling god was visible for many kilometers from Rhodes, and soon the rumor about him spread throughout the ancient world. But half a century later, a strong earthquake that destroyed Rhodes knocked the colossus to the ground, the knees were the most vulnerable spot of the statue. This is where the expression "colossus with feet of clay" comes from.
So it lay on the shore of the colossus bay - the main tourist attraction of the island. The defeated giant was seen by Pliny the Elder, who came there in the first century AD. Pliny was most struck by the fact that only a few people could wrap their hands around the thumb of the statue.
The colossus lying on the ground was overgrown with cobwebs and legends. In eyewitness accounts, he seemed much larger than he really was. Legends appeared in Roman literature that it originally towered over the entrance to the harbor and was so large that ships passed between its legs to the city.
Lighthouse of Alexandria (Pharos)
Lighthouse of Alexandria (Faros lighthouse) - one of the seven ancient wonders of the world, was erected in the III century BC. e. on the small island of Faros off the coast of the Egyptian city of Alexandria. It was a busy port founded by Alexander the Great during his visit to Egypt in 332 BC. e.
The lighthouse of Alexandria was the world's first lighthouse and the only one of the seven wonders of the world that served a practical purpose, helping ships safely navigate the reefs on their way to the bay of Alexandria. The lighthouse, according to various estimates, rose to a height of 120 to 140 meters, and the light that it emitted could be seen at a distance of up to 60 km.
The lighthouse stood for almost a thousand years, but by the XII century AD. e., the Alexandrian bay was so silted up that ships could no longer use it and the lighthouse fell into disrepair. Abandoned, he stood for some time, until in 796 AD. e. it was not destroyed by the earthquake. At the end of the XV century. Sultan Kait-bey erected a fortress on the site of the lighthouse from the wreckage, which was subsequently rebuilt more than once.
These are the miracles that were described in my book. The same ones: 7 wonders. But time does not stand still, and now there are many more such miracles. It seems to me that they are also worthy of our attention ...
New 7 wonders of the world
Great Wall of China (China)
The Great Wall of China is one of the oldest architectural monuments in China and a symbol of the power of Chinese civilization. Probably, there is not a single civilized person in the world who has not heard about the Great Wall of China. It stretches from the Liaodong Gulf northeast of Beijing through Northern China to the Gobi Desert.
Construction lasted 10 years and faced numerous difficulties. The main problem was the lack of appropriate infrastructure for construction: there were no roads, there was no adequate water and food for those involved in the work, while their number reached 300 thousand people, and the total number of builders involved in Qin reached, according to some estimates, 2 million. Slaves, soldiers, peasants were involved in the construction. As a result of epidemics and overwork, at least tens of thousands of people died. Resentment at the mobilization to build the wall caused popular uprisings and was one of the reasons for the fall of the Qin Dynasty.
Probably, no creation of human hands strikes the imagination as much as the Great Wall of China - the most grandiose and longest architectural and fortification structure on the planet. The wall is not just impressive - it is stunning. First of all, the titanic labor invested in it and its transcendental dimensions. Truly, only the Chinese, organized and industrious as ants, could endure such a thing. In China, they say that a good half of their history falls on the Great Wall of China - it was built by different generations and dynasties for more than two thousand years, all the country's wars are somehow connected with it.
Statue of Christ the Redeemer (Rio de Janeiro)
One of the most famous statues in the world and certainly the most recognizable in Brazil is the statue of Christ the Redeemer. Installed on Mount Corcovado at an altitude of more than 700 meters, with outstretched arms in a blessing gesture, it looks at the huge city below it. The statue of Christ in Rio de Janeiro, due to its fame, attracts millions of tourists to Mount Corcovado. From its height, a beautiful view of the ten-millionth city with its bays, beaches, the Maracanã stadium opens up.
The height of the statue is 38 m, including the pedestal - 8 m; arm span - 28 m. Weight - 1145 tons. Being the highest point of the district, the statue regularly (on average, four times a year) becomes the target of lightning. The Catholic Diocese specially stores a stock of the stone from which the statue was erected in order to restore parts of the statue damaged by lightning.
The statue of Christ the Redeemer is without a doubt one of the main symbols not only of Rio de Janeiro, but of the whole of Brazil. The statue is visited by many tourists every year. Mount Corcovado experiences a particularly large influx of visitors during the traditional annual carnival, which is held in Rio de Janeiro. Definitely, this grandiose monument is one of the greatest sculptures in the world.
Colosseum (Rome)
amphitheater, an architectural monument of Ancient Rome, the most famous and one of the most grandiose structures of the ancient world that have survived to this day. It is located in Rome, in a hollow between the Esquiline, Palatine and Caelievsky hills.
The construction of the largest amphitheater of the entire ancient world, with a capacity of over 50 thousand people, was carried out for eight years, as a collective construction of the emperors of the Flavian dynasty. It began to be built in 72 AD. under the emperor Vespasian, and in 80 AD. the amphitheater was consecrated by Emperor Titus. The amphitheater is located in the place where there was a pond that belonged to the Golden House of Nero.
For a long time, the Colosseum was for the inhabitants of Rome and visitors the main place of entertainment spectacles, such as gladiator fights, animal persecution, sea battles.
The opening of the Colosseum was marked by 100 days of entertainment events. During this time, several thousand warriors and 5 thousand predatory animals brought from Africa died in gladiatorial tournaments. The arena of the theater had a sliding floor that rose and fell, and with the help of a water pipe connected to the Colosseum, the stage was filled with water and naval battles were arranged. Up to 3,000 gladiators could fight in the arena at the same time, and 50,000 spectators, furiously demanding "bread and circuses", intensely watched bloody battles, chariot races and theatrical performances. In terms of the scope of the celebrations dedicated to the opening of the Colosseum, only the bloodily celebrated 1000th anniversary of Rome in 248 could be compared, when dozens of lions, tigers, leopards, elephants, giraffes, horses, donkeys and hyenas were killed in just 3 days. The 1000th anniversary of the "eternal city" was the last day of life for 2000 gladiators.
Machu Picchu (Peru)
The city of ancient America, located on the territory of modern Peru. Also, Machu Picchu is often called the "city in the sky" or "the city among the clouds", sometimes called the "lost city of the Incas". This city was created as a sacred mountain haven by the great Inca ruler Pachacutec a century before the conquest of his empire, that is, approximately in 1440, and functioned until 1532, when the Spaniards invaded the territory of the Inca empire. In 1532, all its inhabitants mysteriously disappeared.
Due to its modest size, Machu Picchu cannot claim to be a large city - it has no more than 200 structures. These are mainly temples, residences, warehouses and other premises for public needs. For the most part, they are made of well-worked stone, slabs tightly fitted to each other. It is believed that up to 1200 people lived in and around it, who worshiped the sun god Inti there and cultivated crops on the terraces. For more than 400 years, this city was forgotten and abandoned.
Machu Picchu, especially after receiving the UNESCO World Heritage status, has become a center of mass tourism. In 2011, it was decided to limit the number of visitors. According to the new rules, only 2,500 tourists per day can visit Machu Picchu, of which no more than 400 people can climb Mount Wayna Picchu, which is part of the archaeological complex. In order to preserve the monument, UNESCO demands to reduce the number of tourists per day to 800. Machu Picchu is located in a remote region.
City of Petra (Jordan)
The city of Petra in Jordan is located in the heart of the desert. This place is the heritage of ancient culture. Built over two thousand years ago, it is of great value to admirers of ancient architecture and art. This ancient miracle city stretches along a winding valley formed among the rocks, on a site that was a riverbed in ancient times. Steps carved into the rocks lead to an innumerable number of structures - monuments, necropolises, reservoirs, altars. More than eight hundred monuments of Petra have survived to this day.
The structures of Petra that have survived to this day include temples carved into the rocks, dwellings, tombs, reservoirs, aqueducts and altars. If you approach the city along the es-Sik gorge, the first large monument that opens your eyes is el-Khazneh - a temple located in a solid rock with a two-tiered facade approx. 20 m
The mysterious people who reached unattainable architectural heights are the Nabataeans. Without exaggeration, we can say that the best reminder that they left about themselves to their descendants and which speaks about them better than any annals is the pink rocky masterpiece blown by the winds, hidden by them among impregnable mountains.
Pyramid of Kukulkan (Mexico)
25 meters high with nine levels, located in the center of a large square. The base of the pyramid is a square with sides of 55.5 meters. On each side of the pyramid there are four wide staircases, each of which has 91 steps. And these stairs lead to the upper platform on which the temple is located.
The northern staircase of the pyramid ends with snake heads - the symbol of Kukulkan, because in translation from the Mayan language, kukulkan is a feathered serpent.
Exactly at 5:15 p.m., a light show begins - the sun's rays, when bypassing the ledges of the pyramid on the days of the equinox, draw the image of the revived ancient god with a play of light and shadows. This effect lasts for 3 hours and 22 minutes. The sun descends and the image becomes clearer. Soon there are seven bends of the body of the Solar Serpent - they are formed by the shadows of the seven ledges of the pyramid. The sun goes down - the kite slides down, lower and lower. And below, at the foot of the pyramid, the head of the image coincides with the real, stone sculptured head of the snake, which ends with the northern staircase of the pyramid.
The ancient builders of the Mayan tribe were simply brilliant, having managed at that time to calculate the parameters so accurately and arranging the walls of the pyramid strictly to the cardinal points. The pyramid of Kukulkan has some astronomical significance. Each of her stairs has 91 steps, and the total number of steps is 364, plus the upper step-platform at the base of the temple, the total is 365 - the number corresponding to the number of days in a year. And the side parts of the building are divided according to the number of months in the Mayan calendar - into eighteen sections.
Taj Mahal (India)
The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum-mosque located in Agra, India, on the banks of the Jamna River (probably architects Ustad-Isa and others). Built by order of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in childbirth (later Shah Jahan himself was buried here). Although the mausoleum's white marble dome is the most prominent component, the Taj Mahal is a structurally integrated complex. The building began to be built around 1632 and completed in 1653, thousands of artisans and craftsmen worked. The direction of the construction of the Taj Mahal was entrusted to a Council of Architects under imperial control, including Abd ul-Karim Mamoor Khan, Makramat Khan and Ustad Ahmad Lahauri. Lakhauri is usually considered the chief designer.
Majestic, divine, radiant, and, despite its 74-meter height, so light and airy that it is like a fairy-tale dream, the Taj Mahal mausoleum rises in the valley of the Yamuna River - the most beautiful architectural creation of India, and, perhaps, of the whole earth ... White marble domes rush high into the sky - one large and four small, in the chaste outlines of which one can guess the female forms. Reflected in the immovable surface of the artificial canal, the Taj Mahal seems to be floating in front of us, showing an example of extraterrestrial beauty and perfect harmony… But not only the architectural perfection attracts millions of travelers from all over the world to the Taj Mahal. The history of its origin makes no less impression on the hearts of people ... A story that is more like an oriental fairy tale or legend that any poet would envy ...
