Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World represents humanity's first attempt to compile a list of its most extraordinary achievements. Compiled in the second century BC as a guidebook for sophisticated Hellenic travelers, it captured what the classical world considered the pinnacle of architectural and artistic accomplishment. Edgar James Banks introduces readers to each wonder: the towering Pyramid of Khufu (the only survivor), the legendary Walls of Babylon, the magnificent Statue of Olympian Zeus at Olympia, the sprawling Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the ornate Tomb of King Mausolus, the bronze Colossus of Rhodes, and the Pharos lighthouse of Alexandria. What makes this account poignant is the realization that six of these seven wonders have been lost to history - earthquakes, fires, and human destruction silencing these once-grand monuments. Banks brings them back to vivid life, reconstructing what these marvels meant to the people who built them and witnessed their glory. This book is for anyone who has stood before the Great Pyramid and wondered what the ancient world looked like in full splendor, or who dreams of visiting monuments that exist now only in imagination.