Who named the Wonders of the World?

Source: Flickr_Hungarian set of postage stamps of 1980_The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

Explore history and read more about the ancient, medieval, and new wonders of the world. Learn why they were named so and who listed them.

Many kingdoms flourished and perished because they wanted to leave behind their legacy. To do so, they built numerous architectural, among other art forms, which have withstood wars and Time both to stand tall even today. All of these monuments deserve due credit. And they do so when us descendants recognize their value and cherish the memory they symbolize.

Many beautiful historical structures have been rightfully listed as the Wonders of the World. This title honors their legacy and reminds us why they are considered the best in the world. But when one thinks about the wonders of the world, they are also bound to wonder about the people who got the honor of making this list. Have you ever wondered about this, too?

The Ancient

Source: Wikimedia_SevenWondersOfTheWorld_By enUserSlof – enImageSevenWondersOfTheWorld.jpg, CC BY-SA 3.0

The Ancient Wonders of the World were first listed as themata by Philo of Byzantium in 225 BCE. This is a Greek word which means “things to be seen” and this list was published in Philo’s ‘On the Seven Wonders’. He listed the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Walls of Babylon, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Colossus of Rhodes, Great Pyramid of Giza, Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, and the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus.

Another person, Antipater of Sidon named the same sights in his own list of wonders. While, Diodorus Siculus decided that the Lighthouse of Alexandria is a much more worthy candidate for the title rather than the walls of Babylon. So, we have two lists of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Fun fact is that none of the Wonders, except for the Great Pyramid, stood for more than 60 years and only the pyramid exists till date for us to admire. This can, of course, be attributed to the nature of humankind to disagree and destroy in their conquest to emerge as the victor.

The Medieval

Once the ancient period of history, a new era began with just as beautiful monuments in the list for the Seven Wonders of the Medieval World. This includes architecture from the time period between the years 5 A.D. to 1500 A.D.

Unfortunately for us wonderers, this time the list wasn’t compiled by just one person. It wasn’t compiled by any definitive person or group, and we rely on the documents and lists left behind by scholars living in this time period. The list of the Seven Wonders of the Medieval World includes:

The Great Wall of China
The Porcelain Tower of China
The Colosseum of Rome
The Stonehenge of England
The Leaning Tower of Pisa
The Catacombs of Alexandria
The Hagia Sophia of Turkey

The New

Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:New_Seven_Wonders_of_the_World.JPG

As a true sign of democratic principles and values, the list of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World was compiled after a round of thorough voting and discussion.

When the computer and internet was invented and made popular in the 1990s, one Swiss filmmaker named Bernard Weber wanted to use the power of the internet to generate the same kind of buzz about the Wonders of the World again. He was extremely inspired by the ancient concept of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and wanted to revive it.

Soon, a worldwide voting campaign was organized and many people actively participated. The result was announced on July 7^th, 2007 and comprised of 21 top man-made creations. The result ceremony was very grand though, and included celebrities like Bipasha Basu, Ben Kingsley, and Hilary Swank in attendance.

The list of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World includes: