Wonders of the World
A Journey Through Human Brilliance
-- by Shivam Sharma
From ancient empires to modern marvels, human history is etched in stone, brick, and imagination. In 2007, over 100 million people voted to select the New 7 Wonders of the World, an initiative organized by the New7Wonders Foundation to honor the greatest monuments still standing today. These wonders span continents and cultures, offering a glimpse into humanity's rich and diverse heritage.
Great Wall of China
Built: Around 7th century BCE
(with major expansions in the Ming Dynasty)
Location: Northern China 
The Great Wall of China is a series of fortifications in China. They were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against various nomadic groups from the Eurasian Steppe
Petra
Built: Around 300 BCE by the Nabataeans
Location: Southern Jordan
Petra is a famous archaeological site in Jordan's southwestern desert. Dating to around 300 B.C., it was the capital of the Nabatean Kingdom. Accessed via a narrow canyon called Al Siq, it contains tombs and temples carved into pink sandstone cliffs, earning its nickname, the "Rose City." Perhaps its most famous structure is 45m-high Al Khazneh, a temple with an ornate, Greek-style facade, and known as The Treasury.
Christ the Redeemer
Built: 1931
Location: Rio de Janeiro 
Christ the Redeemer is an Art Deco statue of Jesus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, created by French-Polish sculptor Paul Landowski and built by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, in collaboration with French engineer Albert Caquot. Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida sculpted the face.
Machu Picchu
Built: 15th century by the Inca Empire
Location: Andes Mountains, Peru 
Machu Picchu is an Incan citadel set high in the Andes Mountains in Peru, above the Urubamba River valley. Built in the 15th century and later abandoned, it’s renowned for its sophisticated dry-stone walls that fuse huge blocks without the use of mortar, intriguing buildings that play on astronomical alignments and panoramic views. Its exact former use remains a mystery.
Chichen Itza
Built: Around 600 CE by the Maya civilization
Location: Yucatán Peninsula
Chichén Itzá is a complex of Mayan ruins on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. A massive step pyramid, known as El Castillo or Temple of Kukulcan, dominates the ancient city, which thrived from around 600 A.D. to the 1200s. Graphic stone carvings survive at structures like the ball court, Temple of the Warriors and the Wall of the Skulls. Nightly sound-and-light shows illuminate the buildings' sophisticated geometry.
Roman Colosseum
Built: 70–80 CE
Location: Rome, Italy 
The Colosseum is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is the largest standing amphitheatre in the world.
Taj Mahal
Built: 1632–1653
Location: Agra, India 
The Taj Mahal is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. It was commissioned in 1631 by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, to house the tomb of his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal; it also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan himself.
The Great Pyramid of Giza
Location: Egypt 
Though not part of the "new" seven, the Great Pyramid is the only surviving wonder from the original list and remains one of the most iconic monuments in history.
