The Seven Wonders of the World: Art History 102

What are they, how were they built, and what makes them wonders?

The Seven Wonders of the World: what are they, how were they built, and what makes them wonders? Why these seven and not other works?

Let’s find out.

The Wonders of the Ancient World were constructed between 2700 BC and 280 BC. Most lists have, in order of age:

1. Great Pyramid of Giza

2. Hanging Gardens of Babylon

3. Temple of Artemis at Ephesus

4. Statue of Zeus at Olympia

5. Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

6. Colossus of Rhodes (Colossus of the Sun)

7. Pharos Lighthouse of Alexandria

Now, only the Giza pyramid remains. Fires or earthquakes destroyed most of the wonders.

The ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus wrote the first known reference to “seven wonders” in his tremendous 40-volume Bibliotheca historica (60-30 BC). This included the Babylonian Obelisk of Queen Semiramis which other lists don’t include. By most accounts, Semiramis was a mythological figure, not a historical one, based on multiple actual women like Queen Shammuramat. (This was common in old tales, since ancient peoples tended to blend legend and reality. For example, many Greeks claimed their family tree began with gods.) Siculus’ account may be a secondhand story shared with him, or he somehow misattributed an actual obelisk.

In either case, few people seemed to agree with Siculus about the glory of this alleged obelisk.

Since Siculus, many people have drawn up lists of seven (or more) “wonders.” The Greek geographer Strabo was among those who popularized the idea. Other Greeks included the poet Antipater of Sidon and Philo of Byzantium.

Antipater’s list matches our modern list, although he substitutes the Pharos Lighthouse for the Walls of Babylon.