Not all Seven Wonders of the World are the same

We like to believe that the list of the Seven Wonders of the World in antiquity was well-established but that is not entirely correct. 

In the 1^st century BC, Diodorus mentions them by name: the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the statue of Zeus in Olympia, the Temple of Artemis in Ephesos, the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes and the Lighthouse of Alexandria. This is the list we follow nowadays, but the importance of each monument has been subject to personal taste and appreciation of its time. 

Well before Diodorus, many writers had their opinions on the matter. The oldest known is, for instance, Herodotus who, in the 5^th century BC does not mention the Hanging Gardens of Babylon but provides a very detailed description of the Walls of Babylon built with baked bricks cemented together with bitumen. The ramparts were 72 kilometers long, 10 meters thick, and 22 meters high! A striking feature is that the top of the wall was wide enough for two four-horse chariots to pass each other. The intermittent towers were 27 meters high. 

Callimachus of Cyrene, who lived in the 3^rd century BC, chose to include the Ishtar Gate of Babylon – a marvel that has been reconstructed inside the Pergamon Museum in Berlin (see: A mental reconstruction of Alexander’s triumphal march into Babylon). 

Philo of Byzantium in 225 BC, lists the Walls of Babylon, but not the Lighthouse of Alexandria which was not built yet. He said he had actually seen the Hanging Gardens but omitted to situate them in Babylon. Their existence remains questionable and there still is an unconfirmed theory these gardens were in Niniveh. They were described as vaulted terraces, raised one above another, and resting upon cube-shaped pillars. These were hollow and filled with earth to allow trees of the largest size to be planted. The pillars, the vaults, and the terraces were constructed of baked brick and bitumen. The Gardens were initiated by King Nebuchadnezzar II around 575 BC. Philo tells of the Statue of Zeus by Phidias in Olympia, the bronze Colossus of Rhodes featuring Helios (the Sun), and the Temple of Artemis in Ephesos. He further includes the Tomb of King Mausolos in Halicarnassus, and the Pyramids of the Giza plateau, not singling out the Great Pyramid. 

Antipater of Sidon, who lived in the 2^nd/1^st century BC writes that he laid eyes on the ‘walls of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots’, and the Hanging Gardens; the statue of Zeus in Olympia, the Colossus of the Sun in Rhodes, the huge achievement of the high pyramids in Giza, the vast tomb of Mausolos at Halicarnassus; and the Temple of Artemis in Ephesos saying ‘that [as] it mounted to the clouds those other marvels lost their brilliancy’. 

Strabo in the 1st century BC gives by far the most detailed description of the Seven Wonders. 

The Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, the oldest and only Wonder that still exists, was erected around 2560 BC. It is the largest of the three Pyramids at Giza, which are all equally important as stated by Philo of Byzantium. The proportions of the Great Pyramid are colossal. The original height from the base to the peak was about 147 meters. The length of each side at the base averaged around 230 meters. The theories about its construction and function are widespread and are by no means conclusive. 

The statue of Zeus in Olympia stood inside the Temple of Zeus. The large sitting Zeus was made of ivory and gold by Phidias in 436 BC. Although he was seated, Zeus stood 12.4 meters high, meaning that his head nearly touched the ceiling. Nothing much of the temple remains but its impressive East and West pediments are exhibited in full glory at the local museum (see: Olympia, in the footsteps of Pausanias). 

The first Temple of Artemis in Ephesus goes back to the 7^th century BC. After its destruction, it was completely rebuilt to an unheard scale of 115 x 55 meters, i.e., larger than the Parthenon in Athens. The Artemis venerated in this temple is represented with many breasts, and is clearly not of Greek origin but imported from the East (see: Alexander’s presence in Ephesus). Nothing remains today to prove its grandeur and glory.

The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, (see: Halicarnassus, capital of Caria) from about 350 BC was a rectangular monument measuring 40 x 30 meters, and about 45 meters high. It was decorated with scenes from Greek mythology, such as the battle of the Centaurs with the Lapiths and fighting Amazons, although scholars disagree on their precise position. It is certain, however, that the statues of King Mausolos and his wife/sister Artemesia riding in a four-horse chariot, now at the British Museum, stood at the very top of the Mausoleum. The tomb survived in pretty good condition for many years despite recurrent earthquakes but the final blow happened in 1494 when the Knights of St John of Rhodes invaded the area and reused the stones of the Mausoleum to build their castle. Remnants are still visible to modern visitors on the walls of Bodrum Castle. 

The Colossus of Helios in Rhodes, the work of Chares of Lindos, was completed in 282 BC. It stood near the entrance of the harbor although the exact location is unknown. The Colossus wore a crown of sun rays – hence its name Colossus of Helios - and held up a torch. It was made of bronze and rested on a marble pedestal. With a height of 33 meters, it is considered the tallest bronze from antiquity. It was the shortest-lived ancient wonder that disappeared 60 years after its construction due to a severe earthquake. Its legend lives on though. 

The Lighthouse or Pharos of Alexandria was the last wonder added to the list of seven, replacing the Walls of Babylon. It was conceived in three stages: a square stone base, an octagonal middle section, and a cylindrical shape at the top. Inside, a fire would guide the seafarers into the harbor of Alexandria. By day, they were led by the smoke, and at night by its bright light (see: Alexandria’s past futures). The Lighthouse stood over 100 meters tall and its light could be seen 50-60 kilometers out at sea. Its construction was completed between 300 and 280 BC during the reigns of Ptolemy I Soter and his son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus.  

The ancient historians of Alexander the Great have spent very little ink on these Seven Wonders – or the texts simply have not reached us. The Temple of Ephesos, which burnt down the night Alexander was born, was still under construction at the time of his visit. But the king must have witnessed the grand Mausoleum of Halicarnassus and the main features of Babylon such as its Walls, the Ishtar Gate (which he used to enter the city), and the Gardens if they were indeed part of the Royal Palace. Strangely enough, Giza and its Pyramids are absent from all documents, as if they never existed!