The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
The first reference to a list of wonders of the world appears in the writings of Herodotus, a Greek historian from the 5th century BC, but it was not until several decades later that other historians would actually write about the greatest monuments of the world at that time.
In the 2nd century BC, the ancient Greek writer and poet Antipater of Sidon compiled a list of the Seven Wonders of the World in a poem, written around 140 BC; both Antipater’s poem and another list, titled De septem orbis spactaculis – traditionally and incorrectly attributed to the Greek engineer Philo of Byzantium – are considered to be authoritative sources on the physical descriptions of the ancient monuments. The author of De septem remains unknown, as well as the date of composition: it could date anywhere from around 200 BC to as late as the 5th C AD.
The Chief Librarian of the ancient Library at Alexandria in Egypt, Callimachus of Cyrene, wrote a treatise named “A Collection of Wonders Around the World”, however – like thousands of other documents – all that survives is the title, as it was lost in the destruction of the Alexandria Library.
A final list of the seven ancient wonders was compiled during the Middle Ages, at which point many of the monuments had already disappeared. Notably, since the list originated out of early Greek travelogues, all the sites that were included in the list came from locations that were easily accessible by Greek tourists. This is why many sites in the Near East or even further down the Nile in Egypt were seemingly overlooked – they simply were not easily accessed by Greek travelers.
What is different, however, is that Antipater’s original list did not include the Pharos of Alexandria, but instead listed the Ishtar Gate in Babylon. Somehow in the finalization of the list, this monument was changed, though it may have been included in other documents now lost. Of the seven ancient wonders, it is notable that only one has survived into present day: the Great Pyramid of Giza. Five other wonders were destroyed by natural disasters, and the last monument was the victim of deliberate arson.
It may be surprising for many to learn that most of the Seven Wonders did not co-exist – they were simply recognized by ancient writers as incredible feats of human ability. So, for the next seven days, the Ancient Standard is going to take you on a tour of these seven ancient wonders…!
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Tomorrow: The Pyramid (of course)
If there is any doubt as to the accuracy of the old adage “man’s best friend”, one simply need consider the fact that ancient dog burials have been documented on every major landmass in the world, with the exception of Antarctica.
