Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-11-21
THE SEVEN WONDERS,
Great Works OF Man Which Have Vanished
From the Earth.

Great Works Of Man Which Have Vanished
From the Earth.
From the St. Louis Republic.
Different authors disagree in describing the
seven popular wonders Of olden times. Al
present the pyramids. the Colossus of Rhodes,
the Temple Of Diana, the Mausoleum, the
statue of Jupiter Olympus, the hanging gar
dens of Babylon and the PharOs, or watch
tower of Alexandria. are usually reckoned az
the Original seven wonders" With the
single exception Of the pyramids all Of the
above have disappeared. One, two and three
thousand years ago. according to traditions
and authentic history, some Of them were
wonders indeed.
The first of the wonders, the great pyramid
Of Cheops, is situated seven miles from the
banks of the Nile and twelve miles from Cairo.
Egypt. 1t was built in the childhood of the
human race, long before history began, yet it
stands today monument to the memory OF q
wonderful people. The great pyramid of
Cheops" is believed to have been built by the
thousand years B. C. Its height is 4S0 feet 9
inches and its base 764 feet square. Many OF
the monster blocks of granite used in Con-
structing it weigh thousands of tons. Tradi-
ton tells us that 100000 men were employed
for period Of thirty years in constructing it.
The Colossus of Rhodes. the second in the
list of ancient wonders, was a great brazen
statue of Apollo, which stretched its huge legs
across the harbor of Rhodes, and was SO large
that ships in full sail passed between. 1t was
l05 feet high and OF most exact proportions.
The erection OF the colossus was begun in the
year 300 b. c., but was not finished for nearly
200 years. It was of brass, cast in sections, and
was overthrowh by an earthquake III the year
224 B. c. 1t weighed 100, 800 pounds.
The Temple of Diana is another OF the seven
To-, xl,a, IL, IL. L..
peared. 1t was a magnificent structure, stu
ated upon the Eyantine at Ephesus, and was
constructed at the common cost of all Asiatic
countries. The lofty domed roof was supported
by 127 monster columns Of Parian marble-the
tribute to Diana OF 127 kings. The facade of
the temple occupied 200 feet upon the Evan
tine and the walls stretched back 425 feet all
glittering with gems and precious stones.
Fourth in order Of prominence was the
mausoleum-the tomb Of Mausolus, the first
king of Cara. According to Pliny it had total
height Of 40 feet. 1t was erected by Arte-
misia, the widow Of Mausoius, about 353 b. C.
1t consisted Of a basement sixty five feet high,
on which stood an Ionic colonnade twenty
three and one-half feet high, surmounted by a
pyramid rising in steps to a similar height, and
on the apex of the pyramid colossal group Of
Mausolu and wife in chariot drawn by four
horses OF heroic size. The mausoleum endured
until about the year 1404 A. D., when it was
partially destroyed by an earthquake, and
finally torn down by the Knights Of St. John.
The fifth wonder, the Olympian Zeus, was
statue Of Jupiter Olympus, said to have been
sixty feet high and chiefly composed of ivory
and gold. 1t 10 usually located at Ellis but
nothing certain 10 known Of its location or Of
its reputed builder, Phidias.
II possible, tradition and history have told
us less about the sixth wonder of the world
the hanging gardens Of Babylon-than they
have Of the fifth. Herodotus does not mention
them: Pliny only casually alludes to their ex-
istence. and the scriptural account Of the reign
Of Nebuchadnezzar ignores the subject alto
gether. Popular accounts of the hanging gar
dens say that they we're huge baskets OF brass
and iron, 400 feet square, swung on mammoth
stone arches, which were erected near the ROYAL
palace at Babylon.
The seventh wonder was q combined light
house and watch tower, situated on the eastern
end Of the Island of Pharos, at Alexandria,
Egypt. Its construction was begun by Ptolemy
Softer about the year 332 B. C. 1t was 400 feet
high and cost sum equal to sl,24O. 900 OF
United States currency.