Wonders Of The World

The concept of “Wonders of the World” is a peculiar human obsession, isn’t it? A desperate attempt to distill the overwhelming scope of creation, both natural and man-made, into neat, digestible lists. As if the sheer audacity of existence could be contained within a mere seven, or eight, or whatever arbitrary number someone deemed significant at the time. It’s a fascinating, if somewhat futile, endeavor.

Subjective Lists of Features and Structures

This article, you see, is concerned with those ephemeral, yet undeniably potent, compilations of natural marvels and human architectural feats. They’re not objective truths etched in stone, but rather subjective reflections of what humanity, at various points in its history, found most awe-inspiring, most audacious, or perhaps, most useful to categorize.

The term “Wonders of the World ” itself is a broad brushstroke, encompassing a multitude of lists that have emerged from antiquity to the present day. These lists are not merely inventories; they are cultural artifacts, revealing as much about the compilers and their eras as they do about the wonders themselves.

The most enduring and perhaps the most influential of these is the list of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World . This canonical collection, solidified in the 1572 publication Octo Mundi Miracula , represents an early, albeit geographically limited, attempt to identify the pinnacles of human achievement in classical antiquity . It’s important to note that the sources upon which this list was based were, shall we say, rather fluid. They didn’t precisely agree on what constituted a “wonder,” and the works included were almost exclusively clustered around the Mediterranean rim and the ancient Near East . The choice of seven wasn’t some cosmic revelation; it was rooted in Greek numerology, where seven signified perfection and abundance, mirroring the seven celestial bodies known at the time – the five planets, the Sun, and the Moon. A rather neat, if somewhat arbitrary, correlation.

The imagined depictions from the Octo Mundi Miracula offer a glimpse into how these ancient marvels were conceived. The image, which I suppose you find compelling, shows the Great Pyramid of Giza , the Statue of Zeus at Olympia , the Lighthouse of Alexandria , the Colossus of Rhodes , the Hanging Gardens of Babylon , the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus , and the Temple of Artemis . An eighth was sometimes added, the Colosseum , as if the universe couldn’t quite contain itself within the prescribed seven.

A map, presumably attempting to plot these geographically disparate wonders, serves as a visual reminder of the scope, or perhaps the limitations, of these early compilations.

Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

This, of course, is the foundational list. The one everyone thinks they know.

• Main article: Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

The Great Pyramid of Giza stands as the sole survivor, a stoic testament to an era long past. It’s the earliest completed wonder and, remarkably, the only one that hasn’t succumbed to the ravages of time or human intervention.

The canonical list, as established by the Octo Mundi Miracula , comprises:

• Great Pyramid of Giza : Located in Giza , Egypt. As mentioned, it’s the elder statesman of the group and the only one still standing. A feat of engineering that continues to confound and inspire.
• Colossus of Rhodes : Once stood guard in the harbor of Rhodes , on the eponymous Greek island of the same name . Imagine a bronze titan, straddling the entrance to the port. A magnificent, and ultimately fragile, spectacle.
• Hanging Gardens of Babylon : Said to be in Babylon , near modern Hillah in Iraq, though some scholars place them further north in Nineveh , near Mosul. A testament to horticultural ambition in an arid land, or perhaps just a very elaborate legend.
• Lighthouse of Alexandria : A beacon of civilization in Alexandria , Egypt. Its purpose was practical, guiding ships through the treacherous night, but its scale and design were undoubtedly wondrous.
• Mausoleum at Halicarnassus : A grand tomb built in Halicarnassus , a city within the Achaemenid Empire , in what is now Turkey. It was so impressive that the name of its builder, Mausolus, became synonymous with elaborate funerary monuments.
• Statue of Zeus at Olympia : A colossal seated figure of the king of the gods, housed in a temple at Olympia, Greece . Crafted by the master sculptor Phidias , it was an embodiment of divine power and artistic mastery.
• Temple of Artemis : Located at Ephesus , near modern Selçuk in Turkey. A sanctuary dedicated to the goddess of the hunt, it was renowned for its immense size and opulent decoration. It was, unfortunately, destroyed and rebuilt multiple times, a testament to both devotion and destructive forces.

Lists from Other Eras

The allure of listing “wonders” didn’t cease with antiquity. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, a curious trend emerged: writers, eager to emulate the classical tradition, began compiling their own lists. These often bore titles like “Wonders of the Middle Ages” or “Architectural Wonders of the Middle Ages.” It’s a bit of a misnomer, though. The concept of a distinct “Middle Age” didn’t really solidify until much later, and the term “medieval ” itself is a product of the Enlightenment . As Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable points out, these were decidedly “later lists.”

Many of the structures featured on these lists were, in fact, built before the period they were supposedly celebrating, but their enduring fame and widespread recognition made them prime candidates. These lists often included:

• Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa : An extensive ancient Roman funerary complex in Alexandria , Egypt, dating back to the 2nd century. A subterranean city of the dead.
• Colosseum : The iconic amphitheatre in the heart of Rome , Italy, completed in the 1st century. A monument to Roman engineering and, let’s be honest, their penchant for brutal entertainment.
• Great Wall of China : A sprawling network of fortifications built across China’s historical northern borders. Segments of it date back to the 7th century BC, a colossal undertaking spanning millennia.
• Hagia Sophia : Originally a 6th-century cathedral in Istanbul , Turkey, later converted into a mosque. A masterpiece of Byzantine architecture, its dome an architectural marvel.
• Leaning Tower of Pisa : The famous 12th-century bell tower in Pisa , Italy. Its unintended tilt has made it more famous than if it had stood perfectly straight, a rather ironic twist of fate.
• Porcelain Tower of Nanjing : A stunning 15th-century pagoda located in Nanjing , China, on the banks of the Qinhuai River . Its ornate facade, clad in porcelain, must have been breathtaking.
• Stonehenge : This enigmatic Neolithic monument in Wiltshire , England, dates back to the 3rd millennium BC. Its purpose remains a subject of debate, but its sheer presence is undeniably wondrous.

Other structures occasionally find their way onto these lists, demonstrating the ever-shifting nature of what we deem “wonderful”:

• Cairo Citadel : A formidable 13th-century Islamic fortification in Cairo , Egypt, offering panoramic views of the city.
• Cluny Abbey : A once-magnificent 10th-century Benedictine monastery in Cluny , France, a powerhouse of medieval religious life.
• Ely Cathedral : An impressive English cathedral in Ely, Cambridgeshire , with origins in the 11th century. Its soaring nave is a testament to Gothic ambition.

Recent Lists

The tradition, or perhaps the compulsion, to curate lists of wonders has continued unabated into the modern era. Organizations and individuals alike have taken it upon themselves to identify the most spectacular achievements of humanity and nature.

American Society of Civil Engineers

In 1994, the American Society of Civil Engineers decided to honor the “greatest civil engineering achievements of the 20th century” by compiling their own “Seven Wonders of the Modern World.” A rather practical, if uninspired, approach.

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• Panama Canal : An artificial waterway connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, an engineering marvel that revolutionized global trade.

USA Today’s New Seven Wonders

In a more contemporary, and perhaps more populist, approach, the American newspaper USA Today , in conjunction with the television show Good Morning America , unveiled a list in 2006. This one aimed for a broader scope, encompassing both natural and human-made wonders, and was curated by a panel of six judges. The inclusion of the Grand Canyon as an eighth wonder, added due to overwhelming viewer response, highlights the subjective and, dare I say, democratic nature of these modern compilations.

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