The Seven Wonders of the World (or the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World) is a well known list of remarkable constructions of classical antiquity.^[1] It was based on guidebooks popular among the ancient Hellenic tourists. The most prominent of these, the versions by Antipater of Sidon and an observer identified as Philon of Byzantium, is composed of seven works located around the Mediterranean rim. In turn, this original list has inspired innumerable versions through the ages, often in keeping with the limited number of seven entries. Of the original Seven Wonders, only one—the Great Pyramid of Giza—has remained relatively intact into the current day.

Alexander the Great's conquest of much of the known world in the 4th century BC gave Hellenistic travelers access to the civilizations of the Egyptians, Persians, and Babylonians.^[2] These visitors, smitten by the landmarks and marvels of the various lands, began to list what they saw.^[3] As a way of organizing, a compendium of these places made it easier to remember.^[4] Indeed, in place of the contemporary usage of the word "wonder," the Greeks actually used the word "theamata," which translates to "things to be seen" or "must-sees."^[5] Hence, the list was meant to be the Ancient World's counterpart of a travel guidebook.^[2]

Each person had his own version of the list, but the best known and earliest surviving was from a poem by Greek-speaking epigrammist Antipater of Sidon from around 140 BC.^[4] He named seven sites on his list, but was primarily in praise of the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus:

I have gazed on the walls of impregnable Babylon along which chariots may race, and on the Zeus by the banks of the Alpheus, I have seen the hanging gardens, and the Colossus of the Helios, the great man made mountains of the lofty pyramids, and the gigantic tomb of Mausolus; but when I saw the sacred house of Artemis, that towers to the clouds, the others were placed in the shade, for the sun himself, has never looked upon its equal, outside Olympus'

– Antipater, Greek Anthology IX.58

Another 2nd-century-BC observer, who claimed to be the mathematician Philon of Byzantium,^[6] wrote a short account entitled The Seven Sights of the World. However, the incomplete surviving manuscript only covered six of the supposedly seven places, which agreed with Antipater's list.^[4]

Earlier and later lists by the historian Herodotus (484 BC–ca. 425 BC) and the architect Callimachus of Cyrene (ca. 305–240 BC), housed at the Museum of Alexandria, survived only as references.

The Colossus of Rhodes was the last of the seven to be completed, after 280 BC, but the first to be destroyed, by an earthquake in 226/225 BC. Hence, all seven existed at the same time for a period of less than 60 years. Few people could personally witness all the seven wonders.

Antipater had an earlier version which replaced Lighthouse of Alexandria with the Walls of Babylon.^[4] Lists which preceded the construction of Colossus of Rhodes completed their seven entries with the inclusion of the Ishtar Gate.

In the sixth century, a list of seven wonders was compiled by Gregory, Bishop of Tours. The list included the Temple of Solomon, the Pharos of Alexandria and Noah's Ark.^[7]

It is thought that the limitation of the lists to seven entries was attributed to the special magical meaning of the number.^[3][8] Geographically, the list only covered the sculptural and architectural monuments of the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern regions,^[6] then thought to encompass the "known" world for the Greeks. Hence, extant sites beyond this realm were not considered as part of contemporary accounts.^[2]

The primary accounts, coming from Hellenistic writers, also heavily influenced the places included in the wonders list. Five of the seven entries are a celebration of Greek accomplishments in the arts and architecture (the exceptions being the Pyramids of Giza and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon).

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Source: Wikipedia.org