The 7 Wonders of The Ancient

World
BIBLE FOLIO

TYLER Z | FORM 1 PEARL | 2ND OCTOBER 2023

 Table of Content
Description Page

Colossus of Rhodes 2

Great Pyramids of Giza 5

Hanging Gardens of Babylon 8

The Statue of Zeus 12

Temple of Artemis 15

Mausoleum at Halicarnassus 18

Lighthouse of Alexandria 21

References & Links 25

PAGE 1
 COLOSSUS OF RHODES

The Colossus of Rhodes was a statue of the Greek sun-god Helios, erected in the
city of Rhodes, on the Greek island of the same name.

The Colossus of Rhodes (Dalí) · Rhodes (city) · 226 BC Rhodes earthquake

Counted among the Seven Wonders, the Colossus of Rhodes was a huge and
impressive monument created to celebrate a victory that occurred centuries ago on
the Greek island of Rhodes. The Colossus statue was constructed as a symbol of the
island inhabitant’s successful defenses against the Macedonian military leader
Demetrius Poliocretes, who for more than a year, had terrorized the islanders with
his naval and army forces. Based on descriptions currently available, the Colossus of
Rhodes was roughly equivalent in size to the modern Statue of Liberty (1876), at
around 33 meters – making it the largest of the ancient world’s statues. Counted
among the Seven Wonders, the Colossus of Rhodes was a huge and impressive
monument created to celebrate a victory that occurred centuries ago on the Greek
island of Rhodes. The Colossus statue was constructed as a symbol of the island

PAGE 2
inhabitant’s successful defenses against the Macedonian military leader Demetrius
Poliocretes, who for more than a year, had terrorized the islanders with his naval
and army forces. Based on descriptions currently available, the Colossus of
Rhodes was roughly equivalent in size to the modern Statue of Liberty (1876), at
around 33 meters – making it the largest of the ancient world’s statues.

CONSTRUCTION
Construction began in 292 BC. Ancient accounts, which differ to some degree,
describe the structure as being built with iron tie bars to which brass plates were
fixed to form the skin. The interior of the structure, which stood on a 15-metre-high
(49-foot) white marble pedestal near the Rhodes harbour entrance, was then filled
with stone blocks as construction progressed.[14] Other sources place the Colossus
on a breakwater in the harbour. According to most contemporary descriptions, the
statue itself was about 70 cubits, or 32 metres (105 feet) tall. [15] Much of the iron
and bronze was reforged from the various weapons Demetrius's army left behind,
and the abandoned second siege tower may have been used for scaffolding around
the lower levels during construction.

The Standing Colossus (280BC – 226BC)

After twelve years, in 280 BC, the statue was completed. Preserved in Greek
anthologies of poetry is what is believed to be the genuine dedication text for the
Colossus.[18]
Αὐτῷ σοὶ πρὸς Ὄλυμπον ἐμακύναντο κολοσσὸν
τόνδε Ῥόδου ναέται Δωρίδος, Ἀέλιε,
χάλκεον ἁνίκα κῦμα κατευνάσαντες Ἐνυοῦς
ἔστεψαν πάτραν δυσμενέων ἐνάροις.
οὐ γὰρ ὑπὲρ πελάγους μόνον κάτθεσαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν γᾷ,
ἁβρὸν ἀδουλώτου φέγγος ἐλευθερίας·
τοῖς γὰρ ἀφ' Ἡρακλῆος ἀεξηθεῖσι γενέθλας
πάτριος ἐν πόντῳ κἠν χθονὶ κοιρανία.
To you, O Sun, the people of Dorian Rhodes set up this bronze statue reaching to
Olympus, when they had pacified the waves of war and crowned their city with the
spoils taken from the enemy. Not only over the seas but also on land did they kindle
the lovely torch of freedom and independence. For to the descendants of Herakles
belongs dominion over sea and land.

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 DESTRUCTION
Construction began in 292 BC. The statue stood for 54 years until a 226 BC earthquake
caused significant damage to large portions of Rhodes, including the harbour and commercial
buildings, which were destroyed.[19] The statue snapped at the knees and fell over onto
land. Ptolemy III offered to pay for the reconstruction of the statue, but the Oracle of
Delphi made the Rhodians fear that they had offended Helios, and they declined to rebuild it.

FALLEN STATE (226BC – 653AD)

The remains lay on the ground for over 800 years and, even broken, they were so impressive
that many travelled to see them.
The remains were described briefly by Strabo (64 or 63 BC – c. 24 AD), in his work Geography
(Book XIV, Chapter 2.5). Strabo was a Greek geographer, philosopher, and historian who lived
in Asia Minor during the transitional period of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire.
Strabo is best known for his work Geographica ("Geography"), which presented a descriptive
history of people and places from different regions of the world known during his lifetime.

LOCALITY MAP OF THE COLOSSUS OF RHODES

PAGE 4
 GREAT PYRAMIDS OF GIZA

Pyramids of Giza, Arabic Ahrāmāt Al-Jīzah, Giza also spelled Gizeh, three
4th-dynasty (c. 2575–c. 2465 BCE) pyramids erected on a rocky plateau on the west
bank of the Nile River near Al-Jīzah (Giza) in northern Egypt. In ancient times
they were included among the Seven Wonders of the World. The ancient ruins of
the Memphis area, including the Pyramids of Giza, Ṣaqqārah, Dahshūr, Abū
Ruwaysh, and Abū Ṣīr, were collectively designated a UNESCO World Heritage
site in 1979.

Pyramid of Khafre: Mortuary Temple

PAGE 5
 Pyramid of Menkaure

− The designations of the pyramids—Khufu, Khafre, and Menkaure—

correspond to the kings for whom they were built. The northernmost and
oldest pyramid of the group was built for Khufu (Greek: Cheops), the second
king of the 4th dynasty. Called the Great Pyramid, it is the largest of the
three, the length of each side at the base averaging 755.75 feet (230 metres)
and its original height being 481.4 feet (147 metres).

− The middle pyramid was built for Khafre (Greek: Chephren), the fourth of
the eight kings of the 4th dynasty; the structure measures 707.75 feet (216
metres) on each side and was originally 471 feet (143 metres) high.

− The southernmost and last pyramid to be built was that of Menkaure (Greek:
Mykerinus), the fifth king of the 4th dynasty; each side measures 356.5 feet
(109 metres), and the structure’s completed height was 218 feet (66 metres).
All three pyramids were plundered both internally and externally in ancient
and medieval times.

− Thus, the grave goods originally deposited in the burial chambers are
missing, and the pyramids no longer reach their original heights because they
have been almost entirely stripped of their outer casings of smooth white
limestone; the Great Pyramid, for example, is now only 451.4 feet (138 metres)
high. That of Khafre retains the outer limestone casing only at its topmost
portion. Constructed near each pyramid was a mortuary temple, which was
linked via a sloping causeway to a valley temple on the edge of the Nile
floodplain. Also nearby were subsidiary pyramids used for the burials of other
members of the royal family.

− To the south of the Great Pyramid near Khafre’s valley temple lies the Great
Sphinx. Carved out of limestone, the Sphinx has the facial features of a man
but the body of a recumbent lion; it is approximately 240 feet (73 metres)
long and 66 feet (20 metres) high.

PAGE 6
LOCALITY MAP OF THE PYRAMIDS OF GIZA

BUILDER OF PYRAMIDS OF GIZA

Khafre, also spelled Khafra,

Greek Chephren, (flourished 26th
century BCE), fourth king of the 4th
dynasty (c. 2575–c. 2465 BCE) of ancient
Egypt and builder of the second of the
three Pyramids of Giza.

PAGE 7
 HANGING GARDENS OF BABYLON

Hanging Gardens of Babylon, ancient gardens considered one of the Seven

Wonders of the World and thought to have been located near the royal palace
in Babylon. By the beginning of the 21st century, the site of the Hanging Gardens
had not yet been conclusively established. Nevertheless, many theories persisted
regarding the structure and location of the gardens. Some researchers proposed that
these were rooftop gardens. Another theory, popularized by the writings of British
archaeologist Leonard Woolley, suggested that the gardens were built within the
walls of the royal palace at Babylon, the capital of Babylonia (now in southern Iraq),
and did not actually “hang” but were instead “up in the air”; that is, they were roof
gardens laid out on a series of ziggurat terraces that were irrigated by pumps from
the Euphrates River. Traditionally, they were thought to be the work either of the
semilegendary queen Sammu-ramat (Greek Semiramis, mother of the Assyrian king
Adad-nirari III, who reigned from 810 to 783 BCE) or of King Nebuchadrezzar
II (reigned c. 605–c. 561 BCE), who built them to console his Median wife, Amytis,
because she missed the mountains and greenery of her homeland.

PAGE 8
 History
− The Hanging Gardens were described in detail by a number of classical
authors. Though some sources disagreed on who built them, a number of
descriptions concurred that the gardens were located near the royal palace
and were set upon vaulted terraces. They were also described as having been
watered by an exceptional system of irrigation and roofed with stone
balconies on which were layered various materials, such as reeds, bitumen,
and lead, so that the irrigation water would not seep through the terraces.
Although no certain traces of the Hanging Gardens have been found, a
German archaeologist, Robert Koldewey, did uncover an unusual series of
foundation chambers and vaults in the northeastern corner of the palace at
Babylon. A well in one of the vaults may have been used in conjunction with
a chain pump and thus was thought perhaps to be part of the substructure of
the once towering Hanging Gardens.
− Research in the late 20th and early 21st centuries suggested that popular
theories holding that the Hanging Gardens had once thrived in Babylon atop
a rooftop or terraced ziggurat were perhaps misconceptions. Instead, a later
theory postulated that, owing to confusion among classical sources, the
Hanging Gardens might well have been those constructed
by Sennacherib (705/704–681 BCE) at Nineveh. This research suggested that
the gardens were laid out on a sloping construct designed to imitate a natural
mountain landscape and were watered by a novel system of irrigation,
perhaps making early use of what would eventually be known as
the Archimedes screw.

PAGE 9
 Location
Presumed to have been located on or near the east bank of the River
Euphrates, about 31 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq, the Hanging Gardens of
Babylon—with their blossoming flowers, ripe fruit, gushing waterfalls,
terraces lush with rich foliage, and exotic creatures roaming about—may
have been only a figment of the fertile imagination of Greek scholars and
poets, or the boasts of returning soldiers.

Locality Map

PAGE 10
 Builder of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon

According to one legend, the Hanging Gardens were built alongside a grand palace
known as The Marvel of Mankind, by the Neo-Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar
II (who ruled between 605 and 562 BC), for his Median wife, Queen Amytis, because
she missed the green hills and valleys of her homeland. This was attested to by the
Babylonian priest Berossus, writing in about 290 BC, a description that was later
quoted by Josephus. The construction of the Hanging Gardens has also been
attributed to the legendary queen Semiramis and they have been called the Hanging
Gardens of Semiramis as an alternative name.

PAGE 11
 THE STATUE OF ZEUS

The Statue of Zeus at Olympia was a giant seated figure, about 12.4 m (41 ft) tall, made by
the Greek sculptor Phidias around 435 BC at the sanctuary of Olympia, Greece, and erected
in the Temple of Zeus there. Zeus is the sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion, who
rules as king of the gods of Mount Olympus.
The statue was a chryselephantine sculpture of ivory plates and gold panels on a wooden
framework. Zeus sat on a painted cedarwood throne ornamented with ebony, ivory, gold, and
precious stones. It was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
The statue was lost and destroyed before the end of the 5th century AD, with conflicting
accounts of the date and circumstances. Details of its form are known only from ancient Greek
descriptions and representations on coins.

PAGE 12
 History
− The statue of Zeus was commissioned by the Eleans, custodians of
the Olympic Games, in the latter half of the fifth century BC for their newly
constructed Temple of Zeus. Seeking to outdo their Athenian rivals, the
Eleans employed sculptor Phidias, who had previously made the massive
statue of Athena Parthenos in the Parthenon.

− The statue occupied half the width of the aisle of the temple built to house
it. The geographer Strabo noted early in the 1st century BC that the statue
gave "the impression that if Zeus arose and stood erect he would unroof the
temple." The Zeus was a chryselephantine sculpture, made with ivory and
gold panels on a wooden substructure. No copy in marble or bronze has
survived, though there are recognizable but only approximate versions on
coins of nearby Elis and on Roman coins and engraved gems.

− The 2nd-century AD geographer and traveler Pausanias left a detailed

description: the statue was crowned with a sculpted wreath of olive sprays
and wore a gilded robe made from glass and carved with animals and lilies.
Its right hand held a small chryselephantine statue of crowned Nike, goddess
of victory; its left a scepter inlaid with many metals, supporting an eagle. The
throne featured painted figures and wrought images and was decorated with
gold, precious stones, ebony, and ivory. Zeus' golden sandals rested upon a
footstool decorated with an Amazonomachy in relief. The passage
underneath the throne was restricted by painted screens.

− Pausanias also recounts that the statue was kept constantly coated with olive
oil to counter the harmful effect on the ivory caused by the "marshiness" of
the Altis grove. The floor in front of the image was paved with black tiles and
surrounded by a raised rim of marble to contain the oil. This reservoir acted
as a reflecting pool which doubled the apparent height of the statue.

− According to the Roman historian Livy, the Roman general Aemilius

Paullus (the victor over Macedon) saw the statue and "was moved to his soul,
as if he had seen the god in person", while the 1st-century AD Greek
orator Dio Chrysostom declared that a single glimpse of the statue would
make a man forget all his earthly troubles.

PAGE 13
 Sculptor of the Statue of Zeus

Phidias, also spelled Pheidias, (flourished c. 490–430 BCE), Athenian sculptor, the
artistic director of the construction of the Parthenon, who created its most
important religious images and supervised and probably designed its overall
sculptural decoration. It is said of Phidias that he alone had seen the exact image of
the gods and that he revealed it to man. He established forever
general conceptions of Zeus and Athena.

The approximate date of the statue (the third quarter of the 5th century BC) was
confirmed in the rediscovery (1954–1958) of Phidias' workshop, approximately
where Pausanias said the statue of Zeus was constructed. Archaeological finds
included tools for working gold and ivory, ivory chippings, precious stones and
terracotta moulds. Most of the latter were used to create glass plaques, and to form
the statue's robe from sheets of glass, naturalistically draped and folded, then gilded.
A cup inscribed "ΦΕΙΔΙΟΥ ΕΙΜΙ" or "I belong to Phidias" was found at the
site. However, the inscription is widely considered to be a forgery.

Locality Map

PAGE 14
 TEMPLE OF ARTEMIS

History
− The Temple of Artemis or Artemision (Greek: Ἀρτεμίσιον; Turkish: Artemis
Tapınağı), also known as the Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to
an ancient, local form of the goddess Artemis (identified with Diana, a Roman
goddess). It was located in Ephesus (near the modern town of Selçuk in present-
day Turkey). By 401 AD it had been ruined or destroyed. Only foundations and
fragments of the last temple remain at the site.

− The earliest version of the temple (a Bronze Age temenos) antedated the Ionic
immigration by many years. Callimachus, in his Hymn to Artemis, attributed it to
the Amazons. In the 7th century BC, it was destroyed by a flood.

− Its reconstruction, in more grandiose form, began around 550 BC,

under Chersiphron, the Cretan architect, and his son Metagenes. The project was
funded by Croesus of Lydia, and took 10 years to complete. This version of the
temple was destroyed in 356 BC by an arsonist.

− The next, greatest, and last form of the temple, funded by the Ephesians
themselves, is described in Antipater of Sidon's list of the world's Seven Wonders:
I have set eyes on the wall of lofty Babylon on which is a road for chariots, and
the statue of Zeus by the Alpheus, and the hanging gardens, and the colossus of the
Sun, and the huge labour of the high pyramids, and the vast tomb of Mausolus; but
when I saw the house of Artemis that mounted to the clouds, those other marvels
lost their brilliancy, and I said, "Lo, apart from Olympus, the Sun never looked on
aught so grand"

PAGE 15
 Location
The Temple of Artemis (Artemision) was located western coast of Asia
Minor (modern Turkey) and built in the 6th century BCE near the ancient city of
Ephesus, about 75 kilometres south from the modern port city of İzmir, in Turkey.
This ancient city no longer exists. Today the site lies on the edge of the modern town
of Selçuk.

Such was its tremendous size, double the dimensions of other Greek temples
including the Parthenon, that it was soon regarded as one of the Seven
Wonders of the Ancient World.

Destroyed by a deliberate fire in the 4th century BCE and then rebuilt, the great
Ionic temple survived until Late Antiquity and the Gothic invasion of c. 267 CE.
Once again rebuilt, in 401 CE it was torn down for the last time by a Christian mob.
Today only the foundations and a solitary column stand as a reminder of the site
where once stood the greatest temple in the ancient Mediterranean.

Locality Map

Destruction & Rebuilding

In the 4th century BCE, the temple partially funded by Croesus was destroyed by a
fire deliberately started by a man called Herostratus, who became one of history's
most infamous arsonists, his sole ambition in committing the crime. According to
the Greek writer Plutarch (c. 45-125 CE) in his biography of Alexander the Great,
the great Macedonian leader was born on the very same day that the Temple of
Artemis burnt down, around 21 July 356 BCE (the 6th day of Hecatombaeon).
Remembering that Artemis was the goddess of childbirth, Plutarch noted:

PAGE 16
“It was this coincidence which inspired Hegesias of Magnesia to utter a joke which
was flat enough to have put the fire out: he said it was no wonder the temple of
Artemis was destroyed, since the goddess was busy attending to the birth
of Alexander. But those of the Magi who were then at Ephesus interpreted the
destruction of the temple as the portent of a far greater disaster, and they ran
through the city beating their faces and crying out that that day had brought forth a
great scourge and calamity for Asia.”
Despite these dire predictions, the temple was rebuilt on the same spot and
following the same design as the original, even better according to Strabo
(Geography, 14.1.21). Excavations, though, have revealed the Hellenistic temple was
slightly smaller than its predecessor, measuring some 105 x 55 metres (344 x 180 ft)
with columns 17.65 metres (58 ft) high. In addition, the new version was placed on
a higher base to make the temple more imposing. The architect in charge was either
Kheirocrates or Deinocrates, according to Vitruvius. Strabo also notes that
Alexander, visiting Ephesus in 334 BCE, offered to pay the expenses of the ongoing
construction if his name appeared on an inscription on the finished temple. The
Ephesians refused the offer, one unnamed man declaring that it was not correct for
one god to present gifts to another god, and instead, the Ephesians paid for it
themselves by having a collection of the citizens' personal jewellery.

PAGE 17
 MAUSOLEUM AT HALICARNASSUS

Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, Halicarnassus also spelled Halikarnassos, one of

the Seven Wonders of the World. The monument was the tomb of Mausolus, ruler
of Caria, in southwestern Asia Minor. It was built in his capital city, Halicarnassus,
between about 353 and 351 BCE by his sister and widow, Artemisia II. The building
was designed by the Greek architects Pythius (sources spell the name variously,
which has cast doubt on his identity) and Satyros. The sculptures that adorned it
were the work of four leading Greek artists—Scopas, Bryaxis, Leochares, and (most
likely) Timotheus—each of whom was responsible for a single side.

History
− The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus or Tomb of Mausolus (Ancient
Greek: Μαυσωλεῖον τῆς Ἁλικαρνασσοῦ; Turkish: Halikarnas Mozolesi) was a
tomb built between 353 and 350 BC
in Halicarnassus (present Bodrum, Turkey) for Mausolus, an Anatolian
from Caria and a satrap in the Achaemenid Empire, and his sister-
wife Artemisia II of Caria. The structure was designed by
the Greek architects Satyros and Pythius of Priene. Its elevated tomb
structure is derived from the tombs of neighbouring Lycia, a territory
Mausolus had invaded and annexed c. 360 BC, such as the Nereid Monument.

PAGE 18
 − The Mausoleum was approximately 45 m (148 ft) in height, and the four sides
were adorned with sculptural reliefs, each created by one of four Greek
sculptors: Leochares, Bryaxis, Scopas of Paros, and Timotheus. The
Mausoleum contained total 400 freestanding sculptures. The mausoleum
was considered to be such an aesthetic triumph that Antipater of
Sidon identified it as one of his Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was
destroyed by successive earthquakes from the 12th to the 15th century; it was
the last surviving of the six destroyed wonders.

− The word mausoleum has now come to be used generically for an above-
ground tomb.

Location and Timeline

In the 4th century BC, Halicarnassus was the capital of the small regional kingdom
of Caria, within the Achaemenid empire on the western coast of Asia Minor. Thus,
the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus is located in the city of Bodrum, on the edge of
south-west Turkey. It is also on the shore of the Aegan Sea.

Locality Map

PAGE 19
 Historical Remains

The ruins of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus.

A fragmentary horse from a colossal four-horse chariot group which topped the
podium of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus.

Relief of an Amazonomachy from the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus.

PAGE 20
 LIGHTHOUSE OF ALEXANDRIA

Lighthouse of Alexandria, also called Pharos of Alexandria, one of the Seven

Wonders of the World and the most famous lighthouse in antiquity. It was a
technological triumph and is the archetype of all lighthouses since. Built
by Sostratus of Cnidus, perhaps for Ptolemy I Soter, it was finished during the reign
of Soter’s son Ptolemy II of Egypt in about 280 BCE.

The lighthouse stood on the island of Pharos in the harbour of Alexandria and is
said to have been more than 350 feet (110 metres) high; the only taller man-made
structures at the time would have been the pyramids of Giza. According to the
ancient sources consulted by Thiersch, the lighthouse was built in three stages, all
sloping slightly inward; the lowest was square, the next octagonal, and the top
cylindrical. A broad spiral ramp led to the top, where a fire burned at night.

Some descriptions report that the lighthouse was surmounted by a huge statue,
possibly representing either Alexander the Great or Ptolemy I Soter in the form of
the sun god Helios. Though it was well known earlier, the lighthouse does not
appear in any list of wonders until the 6th century CE (the earliest list gives the walls
of Babylon instead). In the Middle Ages sultan Ahmed ibn Touloun replaced
the beacon with a small mosque. The lighthouse was still standing in the 12th
century, but by 1477 the Mamlūk sultan Qāʾit Bāy was able to build a fort from its
ruins.

PAGE 21
 History
− The Lighthouse of Alexandria is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World because of both the size and speed at which it was built. The tower
stood at over 330 feet tall, which at the time of construction was the second
tallest manmade structure in existence, apart from the pyramids of Giza.

− The Pharos of Alexandria no longer stands on the surface of Pharos Island. In

1323 A.D., the remaining portion of the lighthouse collapsed into the seas, but
currently it still rests near the island. It does still exist, technically, but not in
one piece and not in a location that is easily viewable. Historically,
lighthouses have been used as navigational beacons for sailors so that they
may enter port or navigate around a port more safely. As technology
advanced, lighthouses also became landmarks for pilots to navigate by.

− Lighthouses are usually constructed on the coast or on small islands off the
coast of a port or town to help sailors avoid rocks while coming into port. The
Mediterranean is a region known to have experienced many earthquakes as
a result of the shifting tectonic plates it rests upon. Major earthquakes, such
as those in 796 A.D. and 950 A.D. greatly weakened the structure of the
Lighthouse of Alexandria.

− Over time, small repairs were made, but the structure inevitably collapsed in
two different segments following earthquakes in 1303 A.D. and 1323 A.D.

− While slaves did work on the Lighthouse of Alexandria, they were not the
only people who constructed the tower. Greek engineers worked with slaves
to build the massive, 330 foot (or higher) structure in just under 18 years.

Location
Pharos was a small island located on the western edge of the Nile Delta, Alexandria,
Egypt. In 332 BC Alexander the Great founded the city of Alexandria on
an isthmus opposite Pharos. Alexandria and Pharos were later connected by
a mole spanning more than 1,200 metres (0.75 miles), which was called
the Heptastadion ("seven stadia"—a stadion was a Greek unit of length measuring
approximately 180 m).

PAGE 22
 Locality Map

Construction
The lighthouse was constructed in the third century BC. After Alexander the
Great died, the first Ptolemy (Ptolemy I Soter) declared himself king in 305 BC, and
commissioned its construction shortly thereafter. The building was finished during
the reign of his son, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, and took twelve years to complete at
a total cost of 800 talents of silver. The light was produced by a furnace at the top,
and the tower was said to have been built mostly with solid blocks
of limestone and granite.

Destruction
The lighthouse was partially cracked and damaged by earthquakes in 796 and 951,
followed by structural collapse in the earthquake of 956, and then again in 1303 and
1323. Earthquakes propagate from two well-known tectonic boundaries, the African–
Arabian and Red Sea Rift zones, respectively 350 and 520 km from the lighthouse's
location. Documentation shows the 956 earthquake to be the first to cause
structural collapse of the top 20+ metres of the construction.
Documented repairs after the 956 earthquake include the installment of an Islamic-
style dome after the collapse of the statue that previously topped the
monument. The most destructive earthquake in 1303 was an estimated intensity
of VIII+ originating from the Greek island of Crete (280–350 km from Alexandria).
The stubby remnant disappeared in 1480, when the then-Sultan of Egypt, Qaitbay,
built a medieval fort on the larger platform of the lighthouse site using some of the
fallen stone.

PAGE 23
 Archeological Rediscovery

The lighthouse on coins minted in Alexandria in the second century AD (1:

reverse of a coin of Antoninus Pius, and 2: reverse of a coin of Commodus)

Lighthouse remains found in the Mediterranean Sea

Proposed Reconstruction
Since 1978 a number of proposals have been made to replace the lighthouse with a
modern reconstruction. In 2015, the Egyptian government and the Alexandria
governorate suggested building a skyscraper on the site of the lighthouse as part of
the regeneration of the eastern harbour of Alexandria Port.

PAGE 24
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https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Hanging_Gardens_of_Babylon

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Phidias

https://www.worldhistory.org/Temple_of_Artemis_at_Ephesus/

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Temple-of-Artemis-temple-Ephesus-Turkey

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mausoleum-of-Halicarnassus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum_at_Halicarnassus#/media/File:Amazonomachy
_Halicarnassus_BM_n3.jpg

https://study.com/academy/lesson/why-was-the-lighthouse-of-alexandria-
built.html#:~:text=The%20Lighthouse%20of%20Alexandria%20is,from%20the%20pyrami
ds%20of%20Giza.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Seven-Wonders-of-the-World

https://www.worldhistory.org/Lighthouse_of_Alexandria/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lighthouse_of_Alexandria

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