🏛️ The Seven Wonders

What you’ll learn

1. What 'The Seven Wonders' MeansUnderstand the origin of the canonical list and why seven.The classical Seven Wonders of the Ancient World were a list of remarkable constructions praised by Greek and Roman writers. The number seven and the membership shifted across antiquity, but a standard list of seven crystallized by the Middle Ages. Most stood around the eastern Mediterranean and were accessible to Greek travelers. Only one survives today.
2. The Great Pyramid of GizaLearn who built the Great Pyramid, when, and how it endured.The Great Pyramid was built around 2560 BCE as a tomb for the Fourth Dynasty pharaoh Khufu. Constructed from roughly 2.3 million limestone and granite blocks, it stood about 146 meters tall and held the record as the tallest structure on Earth for around 3,800 years. It anchors the Giza pyramid complex outside modern Cairo.
3. The Hanging Gardens of BabylonExamine the legend, the descriptions, and the mystery of the gardens.The Hanging Gardens were described by ancient writers as a tiered, irrigated paradise of terraces in Babylon, traditionally credited to King Nebuchadnezzar II around 600 BCE. No definitive archaeological remains have been found at Babylon, and no contemporary Babylonian text mentions them. Some scholars argue they may have been at Nineveh, or may be legendary.
4. The Statue of Zeus at OlympiaLearn about the great cult statue of Zeus and its fate.The Statue of Zeus at Olympia was a colossal seated figure of the king of the Greek gods, made around 435 BCE by the sculptor Phidias. About 12 meters tall, it was built in chryselephantine technique, with gold and ivory over a wooden frame, and housed in the Temple of Zeus. It was lost in late antiquity and no copy survives.
5. The Temple of Artemis at EphesusUnderstand the scale, history, and destruction of the great temple.The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, in present-day Turkey, was a vast Greek temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis. The most famous version, completed around 550 BCE and rebuilt after an arson in 356 BCE, was renowned for its forest of marble columns. It was destroyed and rebuilt several times before final ruin. Only a single reconstructed column stands today.
6. The Mausoleum at HalicarnassusLearn the origin of the word 'mausoleum' and the monument's fate.The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus was a monumental tomb built around 350 BCE for Mausolus, a Persian satrap of Caria, and his wife Artemisia at Halicarnassus, now Bodrum, Turkey. Adorned by leading Greek sculptors and rising perhaps 45 meters, it was so admired that 'mausoleum' became the term for grand tombs. Earthquakes destroyed it, and its stones were reused.
7. The Colossus & the LighthouseLearn about the Colossus of Rhodes and the Lighthouse of Alexandria.The Colossus of Rhodes was a roughly 33-meter bronze statue of the sun god Helios, completed around 280 BCE and toppled by an earthquake about 226 BCE. The Lighthouse of Alexandria, built on the island of Pharos around 280 BCE under the Ptolemies, guided ships into Egypt's greatest port and stood for centuries before earthquakes destroyed it.
8. The New 7 Wonders: Old WorldLearn how the New 7 Wonders were chosen and meet the Old World members.In 2007, the New7Wonders Foundation announced a new list of seven wonders chosen by a global public vote. Unlike the ancient list, these monuments all survive. This lesson covers four located in the Old World of Asia and Europe: the Great Wall of China, Petra, the Taj Mahal, and the Colosseum, each a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
9. The New 7 Wonders: AmericasMeet the three New 7 Wonders of the Americas.Three of the New 7 Wonders lie in the Americas: Machu Picchu, the Inca citadel high in the Peruvian Andes; Chichen Itza, the great Maya city in Mexico; and Christ the Redeemer, the colossal statue overlooking Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The first two are ancient archaeological sites and UNESCO World Heritage Sites; the third is a twentieth-century monument.

Questions this course answers

Grounded in trusted sources

• UNESCO World Heritage Centre
• The British Museum
• Encyclopaedia Britannica
• The Metropolitan Museum of Art
• World History Encyclopedia

Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.

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