7
Wonders : legendary monuments
Everyone
has heard of a notorious list of Seven Wonders of the World.
Few people know all the monuments of the menu, but most have
a country, a civilization or a contemporary copy in mind
to create a link to the original list.
Around -140, the Greek Antipater of
Sidon in September claimed to have looked splendid monuments
of antiquity. His journey
takes place in a context where Rome is still the dominant empire
in the Mediterranean world. The three continents covered by
the "wonders": Europe, Asia and Africa still retain
their specificities, their cultures and the glory of their
majestic monuments. From the statement of the author-traveler,
the questions are many. Both the selection: why have chosen
only seven monuments? why is only the "known world"?;
on the state of monuments to the late second century BC: at
the time of Antipater we know that some of them had already
disappeared or were state of ruin.
Our tourist-old "he could really
see these monuments to visit, meet the builders of their
successors? As for the
journey from Egypt to Greece through Mesopotamia, it was feasible,
but under what conditions?
Pyramids
of Giza
Constructed from - 2550, the pyramids are the symbol of
Pharaonic Egypt. Tombs for kings and queens of the Nile countries,
these buildings have disproportionately fascinated travelers
from all eras and still retain many mysteries. Impressive
in its dimensions (height of 146m to 230m square base), the
greater was the tomb of Pharaoh Keops. The exact method of
building the pyramids is so far an enigma. Damaged by erosion
of the desert, the looting of its rooms and use them as a
quarry limestone surface for Cairo, the pyramids have lost
their former glory.
Temple
of Artemis
Dedicated Artemis, Greek goddess of hunting, the temple
of an unprecedented scale was constructed between -560 and
-440 near the city of Ephesus. Famous for its large size
and richness of its decoration, it was burned in 356 BC.
BC by an inhabitant of the city, Erostratus who tried to
immortalize his name.
Rebuilt, the building was destroyed by the Goths around 262
AD. JCIncendies and earthquakes will remove all traces of
the mythical sanctuary until his rediscovery by a British
archaeologist in the nineteenth century.
Statue
of
Zeusat Olympia
To mark their presence in Olympia in the Peloponnese, athletes
from all over Greece also participated in the ancient religious
site radiation. Among the temples included one dedicated
to the greatest of the Greek pantheon of gods: Zeus. Built
by Phidias in the middle of the fifth century BC. AD, the
statue was carved in gold and ivory. The quality of the work
also felt mass given by a height of 12m.
Moved and destroyed, all that remains now that generations
of copies reduced to maintain an overview of his imposing
stature.
Gardens
of Babylon
Brought to - 600 for the simple visual pleasure of a queen
in exile sore lush landscaping roof gardens are perhaps the
most enigmatic wonders.
Nebuchadnezzar II would have built for his wife Amyitis
the form of a gigantic complex of hills and terraced gardens.
Part of the Euphrates? was channeled to irrigate the oases
unreal between heaven and earth. No significant trace does
now certify their location and especially the reality of
their elevation.
Colossus
of Rhodes
At the port of Rhodes, on the island of the same name, the
inhabitants of the city had erected a monumental bronze statue
of 30 m representing Helios (Greek god of the sun).
Built to commemorate the victory over Rhodes Demetrius I
of Macedon (-304), it was erected around -280 to protect
the entrance access to the city. His forms as its function
remain poorly known fault sources. He held a torch? The boats
could they pass between his legs?
The colossus was destroyed after an earthquake occurred
some 50 years later and his remains scattered in Asia.
Mausoleum
of Halicarnassus
At his death Mausolus King satrap of Caria, was able to
relax in the impressive tomb he had built in his city of
Halicarnassus. Completed in at -355, the "shrine" was
a monumental tomb stone and marble, decorated by the greatest
sculptors of the time. At its peak a statue overlooking the
Gulf of Cos, the king and his wife driving a chariot drawn
by four horses.
Human destruction and earthquakes were a result of the work
which fell into oblivion. Only a few foundations have crossed
the time between homes in Turkish streets of Bodrum today.
Lighthouse
of Alexandria
Built as to guide ships approaching the Nile delta as to
establish the prestige of Egypt Macedonian, the lighthouse
of Alexandria was the last of the "seven wonders" built.
Greek engineers to construct -280 lighthouse on an island
near Alexandria, the tower exceeds the 134 m to bring up
the stake may be doubled by a reflection.
The lighthouse suffered invasions and earthquakes, it disappears
completely in the fourteenth century. His recent rediscovery
by archaeologist J. Yves Emperor could revive attempts recovery.
