Great Pyramid of Giza

The Great Pyramid of Giza (also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops) is
the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex bordering what is now El
Giza, Egypt. It is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to remain
largely intact.
Based on a mark in an interior chamber naming the work gang and a reference to fourth
dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu, Egyptologists believe that the pyramid was built as a tomb over a
10 to 20-year period concluding around 2560 BC. Initially at 146.5 metres (481 feet), the Great
Pyramid was the tallest man-made structure in the world for more than 3,800 years. Originally, the
Great Pyramid was covered by casing stones that formed a smooth outer surface; what is seen
today is the underlying core structure. Some of the casing stones that once covered the structure
can still be seen around the base. There have been varying scientific and alternative theories about
the Great Pyramid's construction techniques. Most accepted construction hypotheses are based on
the idea that it was built by moving huge stones from a quarry and dragging and lifting them into
place.
There are three known chambers inside the Great Pyramid. The lowest chamber is cut into the
bedrock upon which the pyramid was built and was unfinished. The so-called[2] Queen's Chamber
and King's Chamber are higher up within the pyramid structure. The main part of the Giza complex is
a setting of buildings that included two mortuary temples in honour of Khufu (one close to the
pyramid and one near the Nile), three smaller pyramids for Khufu's wives, an even smaller "satellite"
pyramid, a raised causeway connecting the two temples, and small mastaba tombs surrounding the
pyramid for nobles.
Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China is a series of fortifications made of stone, brick, tamped earth, wood, and
other materials, generally built along an east-to-west line across the historical northern borders of
China to protect the Chinese states and empires against the raids and invasions of the various
nomadic groups of the Eurasian Steppe. Several walls were being built as early as the 7th
century BC;[3] these, later joined together and made bigger and stronger, are now collectively
referred to as the Great Wall.[4]Especially famous is the wall built 220206 BC by Qin Shi Huang, the
first Emperor of China. Little of that wall remains. Since then, the Great Wall has been rebuilt,
maintained, and enhanced; the majority of the existing wall is from the Ming Dynasty (13681644).
Other purposes of the Great Wall have included border controls, allowing the imposition of duties on
goods transported along the Silk Road, regulation or encouragement of trade and the control of
immigration and emigration. Furthermore, the defensive characteristics of the Great Wall were
enhanced by the construction of watch towers, troop barracks, garrison stations, signaling
capabilities through the means of smoke or fire, and the fact that the path of the Great Wall also
served as a transportation corridor.
The Great Wall stretches from Dandong in the east to Lop Lake in the west, along an arc that
roughly delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia. A comprehensive archaeological survey,
using advanced technologies, has concluded that the Ming walls measure 8,850 km
(5,500 mi).[5] This is made up of 6,259 km (3,889 mi) sections of actual wall, 359 km (223 mi) of
trenches and 2,232 km (1,387 mi) of natural defensive barriers such as hills and rivers.[5] Another
archaeological survey found that the entire wall with all of its branches measure out to be 21,196 km
(13,171 mi).[6] Today, the Great Wall is generally recognized as one of the most impressive
architectural feats in history.[7]
Petra
Petra (Arabic: , Al-Batr; Ancient Greek: ), originally known to
the Nabataeans as Raqmu, is a historical and archaeological city in southern Jordan. The city is
famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit system. Another name for Petra is the Rose
City due to the color of the stone out of which it is carved. Petra is one of the New7Wonders of the
World.
Established possibly as early as 312 BC as the capital city of the Arab Nabataeans,[4] it is a symbol
of Jordan, as well as Jordan's most-visited tourist attraction.[5] The Nabataeans were
nomadic Arabs who took advantage of Petra's proximity to regional trade routes to establish it as a
major trading hub. The Nabataeans are also known for their great ability in constructing efficient
water-collecting methods in the barren deserts and their talent in carving structures into solid
rocks.[6] Petra lies on the slope of Jebel al-Madhbah (identified by some as the biblical Mount Hor[7])
in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of Arabah (Wadi Araba), the large
valley running from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage
Site since 1985.
The site remained unknown to the Western world until 1812, when it was introduced by Swiss
explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. It was described as "a rose-red city half as old as time" in
a Newdigate Prize-winning poem by John William Burgon. UNESCO has described it as "one of the
most precious cultural properties of man's cultural heritage".[8] Petra was named amongst the
New7Wonders of the World in 2007 and was also chosen by the Smithsonian Magazine as one of
the "28 Places to See Before You Die".[9]
Colosseum
he Colosseum or Coliseum (/klsim/ kol--SEE-m), also known as the Flavian
Amphitheatre (Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium; Italian: Anfiteatro Flavio [afiteatro
flavjo] or Colosseo [kolosso]), is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy.
Built of concrete and sand,[1] it is the largest amphitheatre ever built. The Colosseum is situated just
east of the Roman Forum. Construction began under the emperor Vespasian in AD 72,[2] and was
completed in AD 80 under his successor and heir Titus.[3] Further modifications were made during
the reign of Domitian (8196).[4] These three emperors are known as the Flavian dynasty, and the
amphitheatre was named in Latin for its association with their family name (Flavius).
The Colosseum could hold, it is estimated, between 50,000 and 80,000 spectators,[5][6] having an
average audience of some 65,000;[7][8] it was used for gladiatorialcontests and public spectacles such
as mock sea battles (for only a short time as the hypogeum was soon filled in with mechanisms to
support the other activities), animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas
based on Classical mythology. The building ceased to be used for entertainment in the early
medieval era. It was later reused for such purposes as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious
order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine.
Although partially ruined because of damage caused by earthquakes and stone-robbers, the
Colosseum is still an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. It is one of Rome's most popular tourist
attractions and also has links to the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope leads a
torchlit "Way of the Cross" procession that starts in the area around the Colosseum.[9]
The Colosseum's original Latin name was Amphitheatrum Flavium, often anglicized as Flavian
Amphitheatre. The building was constructed by emperors of the Flavian dynasty, following the reign
of Nero.[10] This name is still used in modern English, but generally the structure is better known as
the Colosseum. In antiquity, Romans may have referred to the Colosseum by the unofficial
name Amphitheatrum Caesareum (with Caesareum an adjective pertaining to the title Caesar), but
this name may have been strictly poetic[11][12] as it was not exclusive to the Colosseum; Vespasian
and Titus, builders of the Colosseum, also constructed an amphitheater of the same
name in Puteoli (modern Pozzuoli).[13]
Chichen Itza
Chichen Itza (/titn its/ chee-CHEN eet-SAH, Spanish: Chichn Itz [titen itsa], often with the
emphasis reversed in English to /titn its/ CHEE-chenEET-s; from Yucatec Maya: Chi'ch'en
itsha' [titn tsa][2] "at the mouth of the well of the Itza people") was a large pre-
Columbian city built by the Maya people of the Terminal Classic period. The archaeological site is
located in Tinm Municipality, Yucatn State, Mexico.[3]
Chichen Itza was a major focal point in the Northern Maya Lowlands from the Late Classic (c. AD
600900) through the Terminal Classic (c. AD 800900) and into the early portion of
the Postclassic period (c. AD 9001200). The site exhibits a multitude of architectural styles,
reminiscent of styles seen in central Mexico and of the Puuc and Chenes styles of the Northern
Maya lowlands. The presence of central Mexican styles was once thought to have been
representative of direct migration or even conquest from central Mexico, but most contemporary
interpretations view the presence of these non-Maya styles more as the result of cultural diffusion.
Chichen Itza was one of the largest Maya cities and it was likely to have been one of the mythical
great cities, or Tollans, referred to in later Mesoamericanliterature.[4] The city may have had the most
diverse population in the Maya world, a factor that could have contributed to the variety of
architectural styles at the site.[5]
The ruins of Chichen Itza are federal property, and the site's stewardship is maintained by
Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Antropologa e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and
History). The land under the monuments had been privately owned until 29 March 2010, when it was
purchased by the state of Yucatn.[nb 1]
Chichen Itza is one of the most visited archaeological sites in Mexico; an estimated 1.4 million
tourists visit the ruins every year.
Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu (Spanish pronunciation: [matu pitu]) (Quechua: Machu Picchu;[1] [mtu pixtu]) is a
15th-century Inca citadel situated on a mountain ridge 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea level.[2][3] It
is located in the Cusco Region, Urubamba Province, Machupicchu District in Peru,[4] above
the Sacred Valley, which is 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Cuzco and through which
the Urubamba River flows.
Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was constructed as an estate for the Inca
emperor Pachacuti (14381472). Often mistakenly referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas" (a title
more accurately applied to Vilcabamba), it is the most familiar icon of Inca civilization. The Incas built
the estate around 1450 but abandoned it a century later at the time of the Spanish Conquest.
Although known locally, it was not known to the Spanish during the colonial period and remained
unknown to the outside world until American historian Hiram Bingham brought it to international
attention in 1911.
Machu Picchu was built in the classical Inca style, with polished dry-stone walls. Its three primary
structures are the Intihuatana, the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three Windows. Most of
the outlying buildings have been reconstructed in order to give tourists a better idea of how they
originally appeared.[5] By 1976, thirty percent of Machu Picchu had been restored[6] and restoration
continues.[7]
Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historic Sanctuary in 1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage
Site in 1983.[3] In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a
worldwide Internet poll.
Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal (/td mhl/, more often /t/;[4] meaning Crown of the Palace[5]) is an ivory-
white marble mausoleum on the south bank of the Yamuna river in the Indian city of Agra. It was
commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (reigned 16281658), to house the tomb
of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The tomb is the centrepiece of a 17-hectare (42-
acre)[6] complex, which includes a mosque and a guest house, and is set in formal gardens bounded
on three sides by a crenellated wall.
Construction of the mausoleum was essentially completed in 1643 but work continued on other
phases of the project for another 10 years. The Taj Mahal complex is believed to have been
completed in its entirety in 1653 at a cost estimated at the time to be around 32 million rupees, which
in 2015 would be approximately 52.8 billion rupees (US$827 million). The construction project
employed some 20,000 artisans under the guidance of a board of architects led by the court
architect to the emperor, Ustad Ahmad Lahauri.
The Taj Mahal was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for being "the jewel of
Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage".
Described by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore as "the tear-drop on the cheek of time",[7][8] it is
regarded by many as the best example of Mughal architecture and a symbol of India's rich history.
The Taj Mahal attracts 78 million visitors a year. In 2007, it was declared a winner of
the New7Wonders of the World (20002007) initiative.