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Veterinary Practice News Editorial Blog:
August 16, 2011
The Modern Seven Wonders
Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ
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During a recent continuing education seminar in Mexico, I was fortunate to visit Chichen Itza, a giant ensemble of Mayan ruins in the Yucatan peninsula. I was surprised to learn that Chichen Itza is one of the seven modern wonders of the world.
Where have I been? I was left at the seven ancient wonders of the world. Remember those? They were all located around the Mediterranean Sea:
* The Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. It is believed to have been built as the tomb of Pharaoh Khufu.
* Also in Egypt was the famous Lighthouse of Alexandria. Around 400 feet high, it was reportedly one of the tallest structures on Earth at the time.
* The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, which would now be in modern Iraq. The gardens were reportedly 75 feet high, with complex machines for irrigation. It was destroyed by an earthquake.
* The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, built for the Greek goddess Artemis. The temple would now be in modern Turkey.
* The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus. Halicarnassus, a Greek city that would now be in Turkey, was also the site of a tomb built for a Persian governor named Mausolus, which gave the word “mausoleum.”
* The Statue of Zeus at Olympia, in Greece.
* Also in Greece was the Colossus of Rhodes, a 100-foot high statue dedicated to Helios, the god of the sun.
Unfortunately, of the original Seven Wonders, only one is still visible today. You guessed it, it is the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.
In 2007, a Swiss organization called the New7Wonders Foundation came up with the seven modern wonders of the world via a worldwide vote. The winners are not around the Mediterranean Sea, they are truly from around the world:
* Chichen Itza, the Mexican ruins mentioned above.
* Christ the Redeemer, a 130-foot tall statue in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
* The Colosseum, the amphitheatre in Rome
* The Great Wall of China.
* Machu Picchu, the Inca site located at 8,000 feet above sea level in Peru.
* Petra, an ancient city carved in the mountains of Jordan.
* The Taj Mahal, not Donald Trump’s casino in Atlantic City, N.J., but the mausoleum located in India. And now you know where the word “mausoleum” comes from.
Because of jealousy, rivalry or politics, these seven choices were not universally approved. But such is the list.
It would be nice to see all seven New Wonders of the world, as well as the pyramids, in our lifetime…
Dr. Phil Zeltzman is a mobile, board-certified surgeon in Allentown, PA. His website is www.DrPhilZeltzman.com. He is the co-author of “Walk a Hound, Lose a Pound: How You and Your Dog Can Lose Weight, Stay Fit, and Have Fun Together (Purdue University Press).”
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