Seven Wonders of the World: a Description

Time is fleeting. The civilizations are changing, leaving behind a grandiose architectural heritage. Unfortunately, everything is subject to destruction, especially what was built by human hands. That is why the ancient seven wonders of the world, the description of which is known to every culturally enlightened person, is mostly not preserved until our time. They were replaced by others, still existing. The seven wonders of the world were chosen long enough and scrupulously. The result of this work were seven grandiose architectural structures, famous for the whole world.

Definition of concept

What are the wonders of the world, and for what they got such a proud name? Why they were singled out among all the monumental works of the ancient world and modernity? And they are named so because they are above the category of time. These monuments of architectural thought are admired now just as they were admired in antiquity. Legends are about them.

Until recently, there were ancient seven wonders of the world. The pyramid of Cheops is the only one that survives to this day. Others, such as the Hanging Gardens or the statue of Zeus, the Alexandria Lighthouse, have not escaped. They are known only from manuscripts, essays of contemporaries and paintings, recreated by descriptions.

How the new list was elected

Thus, it was necessary to elect a new seven wonders of the world. Architectural monuments survived this competition (it was conducted by the independent organization "New Open World Corporation"). All modern means were used, including voices received both on the Internet and through SMS messages. 90 million people around the world gave their vote to the monument, which was considered the most worthy to wear such an honorary title. Thus, among the dozens of applicants in 2007, seven wonders of the world were chosen. Each of them will be described in more detail below. For now, I want to list those who were only a step away from the highest reward. So, in the finals participated Red Square in Moscow, the Opera House in Sydney, Stonehenge, the Eiffel Tower and the Acropolis in Greek Athens.

It is noteworthy that the pyramids of Giza were also finalists of the contest, but the Egyptian authorities refused to participate in it. Most likely, they do not consider it possible for these architectural monuments to enter the new seven wonders of the world, because they already figure in the ancients.

the great Wall of China

About how they built the Great Wall of China, there are many legends and beliefs. So, until now many people are sure that the people who worked at its erection are buried right inside the building - it's not so. Although the fact that during the construction of more than a million people died - this is true.

So, the erection of the Great Wall of China originates in the III century BC. It was conceived by the construction of the emperors of the Qin dynasty. The structure pursued many goals, the main of which were:

• Protection of lands from nomadic tribes;
• The inadmissibility of assimilation of strangers with the Chinese nation;

Thus, the construction began, which lasted for centuries. The rulers were replaced: some treated the construction negligently (the Manchu dynasty of Qing), while others, on the contrary, carefully observed the construction.

It should be said that a significant part of the wall collapsed, because it was not followed properly. Lucky only a site near Beijing - for a long time it served as a kind of gateway to the capital. Nevertheless, in the late eighties of the XX century, large-scale reconstruction works begin, and in 1997, Wall entered the seven wonders of the world today.

Why did she get such an honorary title? This is the world's longest architectural structure: the total length is 8851.8 kilometers. How did they build the Great Wall of China, that they were able to reach such unprecedented dimensions? The process has been going on for millennia, systematically. However, it should be said that this is not a one-piece structure. There are tears throughout the Wall. This is what allowed the great Genghis Khan to win China in its time and rule it for 12 years. Every year tens of millions of tourists visit this wonder of the modern world.

Rio: the statue of Christ

Absolutely on the other side of the planet, in Rio de Janeiro stands the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer. He towers over the city, arms outstretched, as if embracing all the inhabitants and guests of a multimillion-dollar city.

The monument is built in honor of the centennial anniversary of Brazil's independence. For its erection, a truly picturesque place is chosen: Mount Corcovado, with which, as in the palm of your hand, you can see the entire Rio, with its top "Sugar Loaf", famous beaches.

The whole country gathered for construction: the magazine "On Cruzeiro" announced a subscription, the funds from which went to erect the monument. The project was entrusted to Silva Costa, although other variants were offered before him: for example, K. Oswald, an artist, proposed the arms of Christ, spread out like crucifixes.

Brazil at that time was a poor, non-industrial country, accordingly, it was impossible to implement such a large-scale project. To the aid came France - that's where the statue of Christ the Redeemer was made. And then it was transported to Brazil. To the place of erection the parts were delivered by a small railway, which still functions. Millions of tourists annually climb to one of the most famous structures of our time.

Taj Mahal

In India's Agra, on the banks of Jamna, the largest mausoleum of the Taj Mahal is located. This is the tomb of the wife of the great descendant of Tamerlane, Shah Jahan. The woman was called Mumtaz-Mahal, she died during childbirth.

The Taj Mahal in India is the pinnacle of the Mughal architectural style. He included the synthesis of the art of Indians, Persians and Arabs. The most famous element of the building is a huge snow-white dome. The mausoleum itself is made of white marble. It is a five-domed palace, in which are the tombs of both the shah himself and his wife. It is noteworthy that the four minarets located at the edges are slightly inclined - this protects the tomb from destruction in case of earthquakes, which are not uncommon in India. To the mausoleum there is a park with picturesque fountains and a lake. The Taj Mahal was built in 1653. 20 thousand builders have coped with such a large-scale project for 22 years.

The mausoleum itself, thanks to numerous visitors, brings considerable funds to the treasury of India.

Chichen Itza

The legendary city of the Maya is located on the peninsula of Yucatán and Mexico. This is not an ordinary city - it served as the capital, political and cultural center. Chichen Itza was built in the 7th century AD. Most of the buildings belong to the Mayan culture, some of them were built by the Toltecs. At the end of the 12th century there were no inhabitants in Chichen Itza. This is connected with one of the mysteries, which has not been explained so far: whether the perpetrators of all the Spaniards who destroyed Maya during the invasion of Mexico, or whether everything happened naturally due to the decline in the economic situation of the capital.

On the territory of the ancient city at different times, several architectural structures were found. However, the most noteworthy of these is the Chichen Itza pyramid. This is a kind of focus of the legendary knowledge of the Maya, their religious beliefs, the center of the cult. 24-meter high, the pyramid has four faces, on which 9 steps are made. The stairs located on each side of the pyramid number 91 steps. If you add up their number, you get 364 plus one, leading to a small temple, crowning the pyramid. It turns out 365 - the number of days in a year.

The balustrade along the edges of the stairs is the body of a snake, whose head is at the base of the pyramid. In the days of the equinox, it seems that the snake is moving. And fall down, and in the spring upward.

Ritual temples are located on the top of the pyramid and inside it. Probably they were used for sacrifices.

Coliseum

The new seven wonders of the world include European monuments. This is the famous Roman Colosseum. His appearance is partly due to the despotic rule of Nero. He, having finished his life, left behind himself a grand palace with a lake in the heart of Rome. Vespasian, who came to power, decided to permanently erase the cruel Nero from the memory of the people. The elegant palace was decided to give to the imperial institutions, and on the site of the lake to build a huge amphitheater. So the Colosseum appeared. Initially, after the erection in the year 80, it was called the Flavian Amphitheater. The modern name of the building was received only in the VIII century, most likely because of its impressive size.

Initially, it was used to amuse people with gladiatorial fights, baiting the animals, etc. It even celebrated the 1000th anniversary of Rome. However, in the Middle Ages, due to the invasion of the barbarian tribes, the Coliseum was partially destroyed, in this process not the least role was played by a powerful earthquake of the XIV century. After a grandiose construction they are dragged along the bricks for construction needs.

Only in the XVIII century, Pope Benedict XIV Coliseum begins to be protected as an important object of architecture. Now it is a symbol of Rome, which is visited by a great number of tourists from all over the world.

Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is a unique city of South America, located at an altitude of almost 2500 thousand meters above sea level. The Spanish conquerors could not get to it, which is why the architecture of the ancient city remained untouched.

Opened Machu Picchu was only at the very beginning of the twentieth century, a professor at Yale University. It is noteworthy that very little is known about the city, they do not know anything about the number of the population, nor about the purposes of construction, and so on. One thing is clear: Machu Picchu has a very clear structure and layout.

At the moment is under protection. UNESCO limited the number of daily visitors to 2500 people.

Petra - the pearl of Jordan

The city in the rock - so you can characterize another miracle of the light of the modern world, the Jordanian Peter. The way to the city lies through the natural gorges, which are the city walls. In ancient times, Peter was of great importance - it lay on the trade route between Damascus and the Red Sea region, as well as Gaza and the Persian Gulf. Trade town and lived.

The inhabitants of Petra knew how to master the stone, but also to collect water. In fact, the city has become an artificial oasis in the middle of the desert.

The main attraction attracting tourists is El Hazne. According to scientists, this is a mausoleum temple. There are many legends connected with the construction. One is the place where Pharaoh hid his riches in the time of Moses, on the other - this is the storehouse of looted robbers.

Tourists around the world, Petra and its main temple are known for the film about the adventures of Indiana Jones.