Seven Wonders of the World

For generations, the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World were an iconic list of spectacular creations of classical antiquity.

They were: the Great Pyramid of Egypt, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, Colossus of Rhodes and the Lighthouse of Alexandria.

The list only included sites around the Mediterranean rim, and the number seven was chosen because the Greeks believed it represented perfection. But, astonishingly, the only ancient world wonder that still exists is the Great Pyramid of Giza.

So in the year 2000 a new initiative was started to choose a new seven wonders,

More than 100 million votes were cast and the winners we’re announced in 2007.

Actually there are eight new wonders, because the Great pyramid of Giza was given honorary status as the only survivor from the original list.

The complete list of the seven new wonders is:

THE GREAT PYRAMID OF GIZA: (honorary status) built in 2560 BC.

THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA: (700 BC).

PETRA, JORDAN: (312 BC).

THE COLOSSEUM, ROME: (80 AD).

CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO: (600 AD).

MACHU PICCHU, PERU: (1450 AD).

TAJ MAHAL, INDIA: (1643 AD).

CHRIST THE REDEEMER, RIO DE JANEEIRO, BRAZIL: (1931 AD)

There were another 13 finalists, listed in alphabetic order:

The Acropolis of Athens.

Alhambra, Grenada, Spain.

Angkor Wat, Cambodia.

Eiffel Tower, Paris.

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey.

Kiyomizu-dera, Japan.

Moai, Easter Island.

Neuschwanstein, Fussen, Germany.

Red Square, Moscow.

Statue of Liberty, New York.

Stonehenge, Amesbury, England.

Sydney Opera House, Sydney.

Timbuktu, Mali.

The New7Wonders Foundation is currently conducting a world-wide vote on the Seven New Wonders of Nature.