Transcript Wonders of the World The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. The Pyramids at Giza (c.

Wonders of the
World
The Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
The Pyramids at Giza (c. 2560 BCE)
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon (c. 600 BCE)
The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus (c. 550 BCE)
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia (c. 450 BCE)
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus (c. 350 BCE)
The Colossus of Rhodes (c. 282 BCE)
The Lighthouse of Alexandria (c. 270 BCE)
Before Common Era
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The expression B.C.E. is now generally used instead
of B.C. and A.D.
The term B.C. stood for “before Christ.”
The term A.D. stood for “anno Domini.”
Since these terms make references to a religion with
which others might be unfamiliar more generic terms
were created: B.C.E. and C.E.
These stand for “Before Common Era” and
“Common Era.”
The Great Pyramid at
Giza
Actually, the only
pyramid to be included
in the list of wonders
was the Great Pyramid,
known as the Pyramid of
Cheops or the Pyramid
of Khufu.
The Pyramids at Giza are the
only of the Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World that still exist. You
can travel to Egypt to visit them!
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
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The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
might have never existed. All of the
historians who wrote about the
gardens had never actually seen
them, so their writings were pure
speculation.
The gardens were supposedly built by
Nebuchadnezzar II for his wife who
missed the natural beauty of her
homeland.
The Hanging Gardens employed a
water pump system to water the
terraced gardens off the Euphrates
River.
Temple of Artemis
at Ephesus
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Artemis was the Greek goddess of the
wilderness, the hunt and fertility.
The temple erected at Ephesus was what we
would now consider a museum, housing fine
sculptures and artwork.
The Temple of Artemis was burnt down on July
21, 356 BCE, the same day Alexander the Great
was born.
Ruins of the temple can still be seen in Ephesus.
The Statue of Zeus at Olympia
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Wanting to honor their god, Zeus, the Greeks
devised the Olympic Games to bring the area
together in celebration.
The Greeks also wanted to build a
monument in honor of Zeus at Olympia
where the Olympics were held, but they
believed that a temple was not enough.
The sculptor Pheidias was selected to create
a statue to the chief Greek god.
The statue was so large that it almost
touched the ceiling of the temple. It stood 4
stories high at 13 meters.
Zeus’ robe and sandals were made of gold,
and the remainder of the statue was made of
other kinds of metals, ebony and ivory and
inlaid with precious gems.
The Mausoleum at Halnicarnassus
• Built as a tomb for King Maussollos, this
monument is where we get the word
“mausoleum.”
• The Mausoleum stood for sixteen
centuries until it was damaged by an
earthquake and deconstructed by British
knights during the Crusades to build a
castle.
• The castle still stands and the polished
marble stones with the elaborate Greek
frieze patterns can be found amongst
the other stones used to build the castle.
Colossus at Rhodes
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The Colossus was erected to honor the
Sun-god Helios. It was probably about
33m high.
The Colossus at Rhodes was the shortestlived of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World. It stood at the entrance of a harbor
on the island of Rhodes for only 56 years
before toppling over due to an earthquake.
The statue was not rebuilt after an oracle
advised against it.
About a thousand years later, Arabian
invaders sold the broken portions of the
statue to a private collector and
transported the pieces out of Greece on
the backs of 900 camels.
The Lighthouse at Alexandria
 Standing 117m high, the Lighthouse at Alexandria
was not only an elegant monument to Alexander the
Great, but also the world’s first lighthouse.
 Utilizing flames and mirrors, the lighthouse provided
guidance to ships up to 35km away to the harbor off
the island of Pharos.
 Toppled by earthquakes, the
lighthouse has remained
hidden from nautical
archeologists until recently
when some artifacts believed
to be from the lighthouse
were discovered in the
Mediterranean Sea.
How Well Do You Know Your Wonders?
• Take the Ancient Wonders Quiz to identify
how well you know the Wonders of the
Ancient World.
• After learning about them, what trends do
you notice? Are they all geographically
related? Historically related?
• Are there any wonders that you think are
missing?
The Ancient Wonders
• The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
were named by various Greek historians.
The list we see today is a compilation of
their lists, with the seven most-chosen.
• The list was generated around 200 BCE
before many of the monuments we
consider wonders were even built.
• The list is very ethno-centric—that is, since
it was generated by Greek historians,
much of the focus is on Greek culture.
Forgotten Wonders
Some of the forgotten wonders that have been
included on modern lists:
Taj Mahal in India
Borobudur Temple in Indonesia
The Colosseum in Italy
The Great Wall of China
The Easter Island Statues
The Leaning Tower of Pisa
Machu Pichu in Peru
Stonehenge in Wales
Many more!!
Natural Wonders
Some people have generated lists of Natural
Wonders of the World, which include:
Mount Fuji in Japan
Niagara Falls in US and Canada
Krakatoa Island
Mount Everest in Nepal
Angel Falls
Many other Natural Wonders exist
throughout the world.
What Would You Change?
• Can you think of things from more modern
times that would belong on a list like the
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World?
• If you had to generate your own list, how
would you choose seven items?
• What criteria do you think something has
to meet to be considered a “wonder?”
The Requirements to Wonder
What kinds of things did you come up with
that make something a Wonder of the
World?
Do they have to do with the wonder’s
appearance? Its significance? Does the
wonder have to be manmade?
Create two lists– the criteria that the
Greeks used to decide the Wonders of the
World and the criteria that you used to
decide your Wonders of the World. Are
they similar?
Comparing and Contrasting
 Using
your lists of criteria and your
new list of wonders, compare and
contrast the two lists of wonders—
ancient and yours.
 How are they similar? How are they
different? Why do you think this is?
 Now, write an essay comparing and
contrasting the Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World and your Wonders of
the World.