Seven Wonders, Ancient and New Quiz

Answer: Solar Boat

The Great Pyramid is located at Giza in Egypt. Of all the ancient wonders it is by far the oldest and the only one still standing. The ancient historian, Herodotus, estimated the number of workers required to construct the pyramid at one hundred thousand.

Modern scholars suggest a much more modest figure of eight thousand, comprised of labourers and craftsmen. The solar boat, discovered in 1954, was constructed from 1274 pieces of wood and measured more than thirty metres in length. It is believed that the boat was used to transport the dead Pharaoh down the Nile to his final resting place.

Answer: Nebuchadnezzar

Because there has been no discoveries of first hand or eyewitness accounts of their existence, the Hanging Gardens might very well just be the stuff of myth and legend. Common ancient descriptions of the gardens, written hundreds of years after the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, paint vivid images of tiered layers of stone pillars with marble steps leading to each level. Trees of immense height and girth, flowers and shrubs would hang down where people could walk under the canopy while workers toiled above.

Answer: If Zeus were to stand up, his head would unroof the temple

The Statue of Zeus was completed about 430 B.C. by the Athenian sculptor Phidias. Described as being chryselephantine, meaning gold and ivory, it rose to a height of around forty feet and portrayed a bare chested Zeus seated on a cedarwood throne. The Greek traveller, Pausanias, recorded details of a figure of Victory in his right hand, a sceptre with a perching eagle in his left hand, and a wreath of olive branches adorning his head.

After being located in Olympia for over eight centuries, the statue was relocated to Constantinople where, in 462 A.D., it was destroyed by fire.

Answer: Alexander the Great

A tiny fragment of the ruins of the Temple of Artemis can be seen today in modern Turkey. Throughout its history the temple had a number of different incarnations due to it being destroyed and then rebuilt. The temple that suffered at the hands of Herostratus was the first to be built on such a grand scale.

It was financed by the extremely rich King Croesus of Lydia in the sixth century B.C. It served as both a place of worship and a bank. After it was burnt to the ground a new temple was built incorporating many aspects of the previous temple into its design.

It featured 127 marble columns, each reaching sixty feet in height and purported to be gifts from 127 different kings.

Answer: Brother and sister

King Mausolus of Caria reigned between 377-353 B.C. His wife/sister Artemisia was so in love with him, it is alleged she mixed his ashes with water and drank them. The Mausoleum was built high on a hill overlooking the city of Halicarnassus employing many of the great Greek sculptors of the time as well as hundreds of local labourers.

The structure stood for almost seventeen centuries before being partially destroyed by earthquakes and finally plundered by the Crusaders.

Answer: He committed suicide

Demetrius Poliorcetes led a 70,000 strong army of Macedonians to Rhodes in 305 B.C., by the following year they had left. Demetrius was so impressed by the Rhodians that he left all of his heavy weaponry behind. There are two theories as to what the Rhodians did with these weapons.

The first claims that they sold them and built the Colossus with the money raised, while the second theory has them melting down the weapons to use the materials for the construction of the Colossus. The statue itself is a representation of the sun God Helios.

While many artists have depicted the Colossus standing at the entrance of a harbour with legs spread for boats to sail under, there is no known evidence to support this image and seems to be something of a romantic fantasy.

Answer: Great Pyramid of Cheops

Construction of the Pharos of Alexandria began during the reign of Ptolemy I and was completed during the reign of his son and heir Ptolemy II. The designer of the lighthouse was Sostratus, who requested he be allowed to put his name on his creation. Ptolemy refused this request but Sostratus was not so easily beaten.

He carved an inscription into the foundation and covered it over with plaster. In time the plaster eroded and revealed to all the dedication to the Gods on behalf of all sailors that Sostratus had carved.

Answer: Definitely not

It has been confirmed by NASA astronauts that the Great Wall is not visible from the moon. This is not hard to believe when considering, at best, that it is only as wide as a dual lane highway. Not surprising also is the confusion for archaeologists measuring the wall.

There are many sections that seem to go off on their tangent and don't conform to other sections around it. One abandoned stretch of wall goes off for twelve miles with no apparent logical reasoning. But like most ancient mysteries there is a tale to accompany it. Shih Huang Ti, the ruler of the time, had a magic horse who could travel up to 300 miles each day.

This horse would walk the route the wall should follow, marking it out in the dust with a saddle attached to his tail.

A wind storm blew up one day and covered over the markings on the ground. Rather than stopping, the workers continued building in the direction they thought the wall should go, of course, they were wrong.

Answer: Vespasian

Commonly remembered as somewhat tight-fisted, the Colosseum was Vespasian's gift to the people of Rome after suffering from the cruelties and extravagances of former Emperors. It was built on the grounds of Emperor Nero's Golden House after first draining the lake of water.

There are some who say construction began as early as 70 A.D., however, considering Vespasian became Emperor in 69 A.D., a much more likely figure of 72 A.D. is also popular amongst historians. While still not completely finished, the Colosseum was officially opened in 80 A.D. by Vespasian's son and successor Titus, with 100 days of games to celebrate. Vespasian had died the previous year.

Answer: Giving birth to their fourteenth child.

For something a little different, I offer these two quotes from a couple of well known Indian writers offering their impression of the Taj Mahal.

"...the ivory gate through which all dreams pass." Rudyard Kipling.

"...a tear on the face of eternity." Rabindranath Tagore.

Answer: Old Mountain

Machu Picchu is located high in the Peruvian Andes around 100 kilometres from the Inca capital of Cuzco. It is believed to date from the time of Pachacutec Inca Yupanqui (1438-1471) and Tupac Inca Yupanqui (1472-1493). While there is still no definitive answer as to the function of Machu Picchu, archaeologists have uncovered what they believe to be separate areas of land for farming, industry, religion and royalty. One thing that is agreed upon is the skillful precision of the 'stonemasons' who carved and smoothed each stone to fit perfectly with its neighbour throughout the walls and buildings.

Answer: Maya

The buildings and monuments of Chichen-Itza are a hybridization of two pre-Hispanic civilizations in Yucatan, the Maya and the Toltec. Whilst not the only major archaeological site on the Peninsula it is one of the largest at 3,000 square metres and considered to be the richest in monumental value.

It was built during the fifth century A.D. but no major additions were made after the thirteenth century. The site was visited by Bishop Diego de Landa in 1556 and he recorded the myths and legends surrounding the monuments. Excavations on the abandoned ruins were begun in 1841.

Answer: Jordan

Nabataean Arabs established Petra somewhere around the sixth century B.C. During the reign of Emperor Trajan, the Nabataean Kingdom was annexed to the province of Arabia by the Romans. However, after suffering from the effects of a number of earthquakes, the city of Petra went into a gradual decline.

The city was conquered by Muslim Arabs in 636 A.D. and they were followed by the Crusaders in the twelfth century. After the construction of a fort by the Crusaders, Petra slowly returned to being the city it once was. One of the most famous of Petra's sights is the Khazneh el Faroun, or the Treasury of the Pharaoh.

This is a forty metre tall Greek style facade carved into the rocky mountain face.

Answer: Stretched wide open to the sides

Standing at 130 feet tall and 98 feet wide, the Christ The Redeemer statue is considered to be the largest art deco statue in the world. It was designed by a local Brazilian engineer, Heitor da Silva Costa, and sculpted by Frenchman Paul Landowski. The construction was begun in 1922 and completed in 1931 using reinforced concrete with an outerlayer of soapstone.

Answer: Seventh of July

Written numerically- 07-07-07. This list was voted upon by the general public in a worldwide online poll.
The following is a list of the main sources I have used for compiling this quiz.
'What are the Seven Wonders of the World?' Peter D'epiro & Mary Desmond Pinkowish. Questions 1-7. I have used the spelling for people and places used in this book.
'Wonders of the World' Simon Goldhill. Questions 1-9.
'The Colosseum' Keith Hopkins & Mary Beard. Question 9
'The World's Heritage' published by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Questions 10-13.
'India. A History' John Keay. Question 10.
'The Incas' Nigel Davies. Question 11.
'The Maya' Norman Hammond. Question 12.
And of course the wikipedia and britannica websites.