Seven Wonders: The Ancient List
A selection of the most renowned monuments of Egyptian, Babylonian, Persian, and Greek civilizations, according to ancient historians.
1. The Great Pyramid of Giza
Entwurff einer historischen Architectur, 1725. Smithsonian / Archives.org (Public Domain).
Giza, Egypt | 2584 BC | Egyptian | Extant
This monument is the only one among the ancient list still in existence—and, at 4,600 years old, it is by far the oldest.
The Great Pyramid of Khufu is constructed of nearly 2.3 million stone blocks. Standing some 450 feet (137 meters) tall, and weighing almost 6 million tons, it is the largest structure in the complex. Visitors today enter through the "robbers’ tunnel," a route carved with a battering ram in the 9th century AD.
2. The Lighthouse of Alexandria
Illustration, 1721. Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach / Wikimedia (Public Domain).
Alexandria, Egypt | 280 BC | Greek | Destroyed
Built shortly after the death of Alexander the Great, the lighthouse was counted among the world’s tallest freestanding structures for a millennium.
Representative of the Greek presence in ancient Egypt, the lighthouse survived multiple earthquakes until its final demise in the 15th century AD. Modern visitors, however, may soon be able to observe some of the original ruins as part of an underwater museum.
3. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Entwurff einer historischen Architectur, 1725. Smithsonian / Archives.org (Public Domain).
Hillah or Mosul, Iraq | 600 BC | Babylonian or Assyrian | Unknown
The only ancient wonder whose location is still a mystery, the gardens are steeped in speculation. Scholars suggest a number of theories:
- The gardens were only mythical;
- they were completely obliterated; or
- they were actually located at Nineveh, near the modern city of Mosul.
The description of the gardens as "hanging" is attributed to their cultivation atop the roofs and terraces of mud brick buildings.
4. The Colossus of Rhodes
New Geographical Dictionary, 1790. Institut Cartogràfic de Catalunya (Public Domain).
Rhodes, Greece | 292 BC | Greek | Destroyed
The Greeks of Rhodes constructed this statue of the titan Helios to commemorate their victory over Cyprus.
The figure’s exact positioning is uncertain: It may have stood adjacent to Rhodes Harbor, or dramatically straddled the harbor's inlet. Contemporary accounts suggest that the height of the Colossus may have exceeded the Statue of Liberty in New York.
5. The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
Engraving, 1804-1811. Robert von Spalart / Wellcome Collection (CC BY 4.0).
Bodrum, Turkey | 351 BC | Greek, Persian | In Ruins
Constructed by a team of Greek architects and sculptors for the Persian governor Mausolus, the tomb was heralded as a triumph of artistry and architecture.
The origin for the English word “mausoleum,” the tomb of Mausolus was destroyed by an earthquake in the 15th century, but its ruins are still visible today.
6. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
Entwurff einer historischen Architectur, 1725. Smithsonian / Archives.org (Public Domain).
Selçuk, Turkey | 323 BC | Greek | In Ruins
According to ancient historians, the Temple of Artemis was originally built by the Amazons—a tribe of female warriors.
Since its initial construction, the temple has been razed and rebuilt three times. Its latest and most remarkable version is said to have surpassed in splendor all of the other ancient wonders.
Albeit nowhere near the tallest of the seven monuments, the temple left a footprint extending 450 feet (137 meters) by 225 feet (69 meters), with a 60-foot (18 meter) ceiling supported by 127 columns.
7. The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
Entwurff einer historischen Architectur, 1725. Smithsonian / Archives.org (Public Domain).
Olympia, Greece | 466 BC | Greek | Destroyed
The custodians of the Olympic Games constructed their Zeus of ivory and gold plates over a wooden structure.
While the statue itself no longer exists, its depiction survives on coins and engravings from the era. The geographer Pausanias described the figure as much as 43 feet (13 meters) tall—13 feet (4 meters) taller than the statue of Abraham Lincoln at the eponymous memorial in Washington, DC.
That wraps it up for a tour of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
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