THE NEW

SEVEN WONDERS
OF THE WORLD

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 in part to protect the Chinese Empire or its prototypical states against intrusions
by various nomadic groups or military incursions by various warlike peoples or forces. 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 between 220206 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. Little of that
wall remains. Since then, the Great Wall has on and off been rebuilt, maintained, and enhanced;
the majority of the existing wall is from the Ming Dynasty.

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 main Great Wall line stretches from Shanhaiguan 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). 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. Another archaeological survey found that the entire wall with all of its branches measure
out to be 21,196 km (13,171 mi).

Christ the Redeemer (statue)

Christ the Redeemer (Portuguese: Cristo Redentor, standard Brazilian Portuguese: [kistu
edto], local dialect: [kitu edjto]) is an Art Deco statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil, created by French sculptor Paul Landowski and built by the engineer Heitor da
Silva Costa Brazil in collaboration with the French engineer Albert Caquot. It is 30 metres (98 ft)
tall, not including its 8-metre (26 ft) pedestal, and its arms stretch 28 metres (92 ft) wide.

The statue weighs 635 tonnes (625 long, 700 short tons), and is located at the peak of the 700metre (2,300 ft)Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park overlooking the city of
Rio. As a symbol of Brazilian Christianity, the statue has become an icon for Rio de Janeiro
and Brazil.[2] It is made of reinforced concrete and soapstone, and was constructed between 1922
and 1931.

Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu (in hispanicized spelling, Spanish pronunciation: [matu piktu]) or Machu
Pikchu (Quechua machuold, old person, pikchu peak; mountain or prominence with a broad base
which ends in sharp peaks, "old peak", pronunciation [mtu pixtu]) is a 15th-century Inca site
located 2,430 metres (7,970 ft) above sea level. It is located in the Cusco Region, Urubamba
Province, Machupicchu District in Peru.[4] It is situated on a mountain ridge above the Sacred
Valley which is 80 kilometres (50 mi) northwest of Cusco and through which the Urubamba
River flows. Most archaeologists believe that Machu Picchu was built as an estate for the Inca
emperor Pachacuti(14381472). Often mistakenly referred to as the "Lost City of the Incas", 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 unknown to the outside world before being brought to
international attention in 1911 by the American historian Hiram Bingham. Since then, Machu
Picchu has become an important tourist attraction. Most of the outlying buildings have been
reconstructed in order to give tourists a better idea of what the structures originally looked
like. By 1976, thirty percent of Machu Picchu had been restored. The restoration work continues
to this day.
Since the site was not known to the Spanish during the colonial period, it is highly significant as
a relatively intact cultural site. Machu Picchu was declared a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary in
1981 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983. In 2007, Machu Picchu was voted one of
the New Seven Wonders of the World in a worldwide Internet poll.
Machu Picchu was built in the classical Inca style, with polished dry-stone walls. Its three
primary structures are theInti Watana, the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three
Windows. These are located in what is known by archaeologists as the Sacred District of Machu
Picchu.
Machu Picchu is vulnerable to threats. While natural phenomena like earthquakes and weather
systems can play havoc with access, the site also suffers from the pressures of too many tourists.
In addition, preservation of the area's cultural and archaeological heritage is an ongoing concern.

Petra: Jordan
Petra (Arabic: , Al-Batr; Ancient Greek: ) is a historical and archaeological city
in the southern Jordaniangovernorate of Ma'an that 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.
Established possibly as early as 312 BC as the capital city of the Nabataeans, it is a symbol of
Jordan, as well as Jordan's most-visited tourist attraction. It lies on the slope of Jebel alMadhbah (identified by some as the biblicalMount Hor) 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. Petra 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".See:UNESCO
Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists. Petra was chosen by the Smithsonian Magazine as one of the
"28 Places to See Before You Die".

Chichen Itza
Chichen Itza (/titn its/,[1] Spanish: Chichn Itz [titen itsa], from Yucatec
Maya: Chi'ch'en itsha'[t
t en i ts a ];[2] "at the mouth of the well of the Itza") was a
large pre-Columbian city built by the Maya people of the Terminal Classic. The archaeological
site is located in the municipality of Tinum, in the Mexicanstate of Yucatn.[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 thePuuc 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, orTollans, referred to in later Mesoamerican literature.[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 sites stewardship is maintained by
Mexicos 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 1.2 million
tourists visit the ruins every year.

Colosseum
The Colosseum or Coliseum, also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre (Latin: Amphitheatrum
Flavium; Italian:Anfiteatro Flavio or Colosseo) is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the
city of Rome, Italy. Built of concrete and stone,[1] it was the largest amphitheatre of the Roman
Empire, and is considered one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and engineering. It is
the largest amphitheatre in the world.[2]
The Colosseum is situated just east of the Roman Forum. Construction began under the
emperor Vespasian in 70 AD,[3] and was completed in 80 AD under his successor and
heir Titus.[4] Further modifications were made during the reign of Domitian (8196).[5] 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,[6][7] and was
used for gladiatorialcontests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, 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 medievalera. It was later reused for such
purposes as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a
Christian shrine.

Although in the 21st century it stays partially ruined because of damage caused by devastating
earthquakes and stone-robbers, the Colosseum is an iconic symbol of Imperial Rome. It is one of
Rome's most popular tourist attractions and has close connections with 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.[8]
In 2007 the complex was included among the New7Wonders of the World, following a
competition organized by New Open World Corporation (NOWC).
The Colosseum is also depicted on the Italian version of the five-cent euro coin.

Taj Mahal: Agra, India

The Taj Mahal (/td mhl/ often /t/; from Persian and Arabic, "crown of
palaces", pronounced [tad ml]; also "the Taj") is a white marble mausoleum located
in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was built by Mughalemperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third
wife, Mumtaz Mahal. The Taj Mahal is widely recognized as "the jewel of Muslim art in India
and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage".

Taj Mahal is regarded by many as the finest example of Mughal architecture, a style that
combines elements fromIslamic, Persian, Ottoman Turkish and Indian architectural styles.
In 1983, the Taj Mahal became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While the
white domed marble mausoleum is the most familiar component of the Taj Mahal, it is actually
an integrated complex of structures. The construction began around 1632 and was completed
around 1653, employing thousands of artisans and craftsmen.[9] The construction of the Taj
Mahal was entrusted to a board of architects under imperial supervision, including Abd ul-Karim
Ma'mur Khan, Makramat Khan, and Ustad Ahmad Lahauri. Lahauri is generally considered to be
the principal designer.