Massive Statue Of The Colossus Of Rhodes example essay topic

7 Ancient Wonders of the World 1. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon - Located approximately 50 km south of Baghdad, Iraq on the east bank of the Euphrates River. King Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BC), grandson of the famous King Hammurabi, is credited to have commissioned the construction of the gardens. Although no tablets were found in Babylon referring to the Gardens, accountings from the ancient Greek historian, Strabo, state that the "The Garden is quadrangular, and each side is four plethora long.

It consists of arched vaults which are located on checkered cube-like foundations... The ascent of the uppermost terrace-roofs is made by a stairway. ". 2. The Great Pyramid of Giza - The only one of the Seven Wonders still left standing to this day, it is also the oldest of the 7 Ancient Wonders. Located in the city Giza, a necropolis of ancient Memphis, which is now part of Cairo, Egypt.

This impressive monument was commissioned by Pharaoh Khufu of the Fourth Dynasty around 2560 BC, to serve as his final resting place. The great pyramid was 145.75 meters tall when constructed, but over the course of time has lost nearly 10 meters. The entrance is located on the North side of the pyramid, and once inside there is a series of passageways and galleries that lead to the Kings burial chamber. The structure is comprised of some 2 million blocks of stone, each weighing more than 2 tons, with the King's burial chamber and sarcophagus made out of red granite. 3. The Statue of Zeus at Olympia - The god of gods to the ancient Greeks and Egyptians.

It was located in the ancient town of Olympia, about 150 km west of Athens, in Greece. The original temple housing the massive statue was constructed around 450 BC, designed by architect Lib on. The statue itself was created by the Athenian sculptor Pheidias. Constructed out of ivory sections, the massive statue was 45 feet tall, holding victory in his right hand, and his scepter in his left. Closed by the Roman emperor Theodosius I in 391 AD, citing beliefs that the Olympic games (to which this statue symbolized) were a Pagan ritual. The Statue of Zeus was transported by wealthy Greeks to a palace in Constantinople, only to later be destroyed by fire in 462 AD.

4. The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus - Built in honor of the Greek goddess of hunting, nature, and fertility, Artemis. Located in the ancient city of Ephesus, 50 km south of Izmir, Turkey. It was commissioned in 550 BC by King Croesus of Lydia, designed by the Greek architect Chersiphron, and decorated by the finest artists of that time period: Pheidias, Polyclitus, Kresilas, and Phradmon. The beautiful building was creating using all marble, with a decorated facade overlooking the courtyard.

There were some 127 columns, each of them 60 feet tall, placed all over the platform area, with exception to the "house of the goddess". The temple served as both a marketplace and religious center for almost 200 years, but was burned down by Hero stratus on July 21st, 356 BC, in order to mark his name in the history books. Coincidentally, this was the same night that Alexander the Great was born. Within 20 years the temple was restored to its original glamour, only to be destroyed again by the Goths in 262 AD, never to have been rebuilt, as most of the Ephesians had converted to Christianity by that time.

5. The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus - The project of this burial chamber was designed for King Mausollos of Caria, by his wife and sister Artemisia. Commissioned sometime during his life, purportedly, it was not completed until 3 years after his death. It was 14 stories tall, constructed by the Greek architect Pythias in 350 BC, made of the finest quality marble. The burial chamber and sarcophagus were made of white alabaster, decorated with gold and surrounded by columns. A statue of a chariot being pulled by four horses adorned the rooftop.

Standing in perfect condition for 16 centuries, when an earthquake caused some damage to the roof and columns. Then in 1494 AD, the Knights of St. John of Malta invaded the territory and used the blocks from the Mausoleum to fortify their castle, using every last block from the mausoleum. The blocks from the mausoleum can still be seen in the castle, which is still standing to this day, in Bodrum, Turkey. However, the beauty of the mausoleum was not just in the structure itself, it also stood in the sculptures decorating it. Some of the statues and decorations can still be seen today at the British Museum in London. 6.

The Colossus Apollo of Rhodes - Standing for a mere 56 years, the massive statue of the Colossus of Rhodes is still a marvel. Located at the entrance of the harbor of the Mediterranean island of Rhodes in Greece. The construction of Colossus was commissioned by sculptor Charles of Lindos, and took 12 years to complete, finishing in 282 BC. The Apollo stood 120 feet tall, made entirely of bronze and marble, weighing in at some 225 tons. As construction mounted, they began to use a ramp of earth to reach higher portions of the statue. Nobody laid eyes on the Colossus until it's completion in 282 BC, where it stood for 56 years until 226 BC, when a strong earthquake hit and broke the bronze and marble statue at the knee.

The people of Rhodes received an offer to repair the statue, with all expenses paid, but after consulting an oracle, she forbade the re-erection of the statue. There it laid for almost a millennia, when in 654 AD the Arabs invaded Rhodes and sold the remains of Colossus to a Syrian Jew. 7. The Lighthouse of Alexandria - The only one of the Seven Wonders to have a practical use, outside of burial, is the Lighthouse of Alexandria. Standing 117 meters tall, the light from the tower could be seen more than 50 km away.

Constructed in 290 BC by Ptolemy So ter, the Lighthouse was approximately 117 meters tall, built out of granite and limestone. There was a furnace in the top of the lighthouse, which was reflected out to sea by a bronze reflector. It stood until 1323 AD. Over the course of three significant earthquakes, the lighthouse eventually toppled to the ground, never being repaired or rebuilt. Finally in 1480, the Egyptian Mamelouk Sultan, Qaitbay, built a fort on the same spot where the lighthouse layed, using the stone and marble from the site.