The "seven wonders" were originally thought to have been listed in about the 5th century BC. by the Greeks.
They were paricularly noted due to their size, beauty and magnificance and although only one of them still exists they have been recoded in history (and on this page).
One of the tallest statues of the ancient world the Colossus was erected by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC on the Greek island of Rhodes.
Chares was commissioned to build a colossal statue of Helios to celebrate the failed attempts by Demetrius Poliorcetes to invade the island in 304 BC. It was partially funded by and partially built with equipment left behind after the abortive invasion.
The construction of the over 30 meter (107 ft) high statue took place between 292 and 280 BC but within 55 years the statue snapped at the knees during an earthquake in 226 BC.
The base pedestal was at least 60 feet in diameter with the feet carved in stone and covered with thin bronze plates riveted together. Forged iron bars were used as a frame for cast bronze plates which were riveted together and the legs filled, at least to the knees for stability.
Whilst there are many depictions of the Colossus straddling the harbour there are many practical reasons why this is not likely. The harbour would have needed to have been closed during at least part of the construction and it would have blocked the harbour when it fell. There were also descriptions of the remains having laid on the ground for over 800 years. It is not likely that the remains would have been pulled from the harbour and laid out again on the ground.
Ptolemy III offered to pay for the reconstruction of the statue, but the oracle of Delphi made the Rhodians afraid that they had offended Helios, and they declined to rebuild it.
The architect is believed to have been Hemon (or Hemiunu) who created 147m high structure with 230m sides. Sir During 1880–82 Sir Flinders Petrie took precision measurements and found a mean error of less than 60 mm in length, and 1 minute in angle from a perfect square. It was also found that the nearly 53000sq m base is horizontal and flat to within 15mm.
In AD 1301 many of the white casing blocks of highly polished white limestone were loosened by an earthquake and these can be seen as parts of build mosques and fortresses in Cairo.
They were destroyed by several earthquakes after the 2nd century BC.
However, due to the lack of documentation in the chronicles of Babylonian history, and differing locations and descriptions given of the gardens by other sources, the gardens are the most controversial of the ancient wonders.
A Chaldean priest, Berossus, appears to have been the first to have described them in the late 4th century BC.
It was from these descriptions that the Greek historians produced their representations.
It is for these reasons that it has been suggested that they may have merely been a “poetic” creation.
Another explanation that has been proposed is that gardens from a different location were attributed to Babylon.
There is tabulated evidence that gardens existed at Nineveh with writings describing an Archimedes’ Screw irrigation system.
These gardens were placed close to the entrance of the palace of Sennacherib of Assyria on the eastern bank of the Tigris.
Having said that archaeological excavations in Iraq have discovered substantial 25 meter-thick walls by the Euphrates River with seeds scattered around.
Although some researchers have proposed that the towers height may have exceeded 180 m it is generally considered to have been between 115 and 150 m. Even at these lower estimates the tower was still amongst the
tallest man-made structures for many centuries.
Ptolemy Soter ordered the construction of the Pharos shortly after proclaiming himself King and the building was finished during the reign of his son, Ptolemy Philadelphos.
The architect Sostratus, despite being forbidden by Ptolemy from putting his name on his work, left an inscription hidden under a layer of plaster on top of which was chiselled another inscription honouring Ptolemy the king as builder of the Pharos. The name of Sostratus eventually being revealed after centuries of weathering.
The large light-coloured stone construction consisted of three stages :
lower level : square with a central core
In order to protect it against the elements molten lead was used to fix the masonry, leading to it becoming the second longest surviving of the ancient wonders.
During “Roman times” approx. 1st Century AD the Pharos was converted to a light house with a mirror at its apex to reflect sunlight during the day and fire at night.
Roman coins from the Alexandrian mint depict a triton positioned on each of the building's four corners and a statue of Poseidon atop the tower.
In 1183 the Muslim traveller Ibn Jubayr reported that:
The tower was critically damaged by earthquakes in the 14th Century and by the 15th stone from the ruins was used in the construction of Fort Qaitbey
Divers are able to view some of the ruins on the floor of Alexandria's Eastern Harbour.
Colossus Of Rhodes
Great Pyramid of Giza
The Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops) was built around 2560 BC and was the worlds tallest man-made structure for nearly four millennia. Hanging Gardens Of Babylon
The gardens are said to have been built around 600 BC by Nebuchadnezzar II, near what is now Al Hillah, for his wife, Amytis of Media, to give her the trees and fragrant plants of her homeland. Pharos of Alexandria
Identified as one of the Wonders by Antipater of Sidon the Pharos was a tower built between 285 and 247 BC on the island of Pharos in Alexandria, Egypt to serve as a landmark for one side of the city's harbour.
middle level : octagonal
top level : circular