Like collections of sayings of famous sages, collections of anecdotes, and stories of curiosities, writings about the Seven Wonders of the World were popular in antiquity and included descriptions of the grandest, most magnificent, or technically the most amazing buildings and monuments of art. That is why they were called miracles, while many genuine masterpieces of ancient architecture and art are missing from the list - the Acropolis in Athens with the creation of Phidias - the statue of Athena Parthenos, the famous statue of Aphrodite of Cnidus by Praxiteles, etc.
Mentions of the Seven Wonders appear in the writings of Greek authors, starting from the Hellenistic era. They should have been known already at school, scientists and poets wrote about them. In the text of one Egyptian papyrus, which was a kind of textbook, the names of famous legislators, painters, sculptors, architects, inventors, which are obligatory for memorization, are mentioned, then the largest islands, mountains and rivers, and, finally, the seven wonders of the world. The "selection" of miracles took place gradually, and one miracle replaced another.

The first list of wonders of the world is attributed to Herodotus - V century BC. e .. All three miracles were located on the island of Samos: the Aqueduct in the form of a tunnel, the Dam in the port on the island, the Temple of the goddess Hera.
Later the list expanded to seven wonders. In the IV century BC. Philo of Alexandria - Jewish philosopher, mathematician, mechanic, surveyor, in his work "Seven Wonders of the World" described the seven most important creations of mankind in architecture. Philo's work is just his personal opinion. He lived in Byzantium, and his view of the world was compressed to the limits of the Roman Empire.

Therefore, all the objects listed by him are located in this territory. In the III century BC. e. there is a new list of wonders. Historians consider a small poem written by Antipater from Sidon to be its source (there is also a version that it was written by Antipater from Thessalonica). The first mention of the Seven Wonders in Rus' is found by Simeon of Polotsk, who was familiar with their description from some Byzantine source. In modern Europe, they became widely known after the publication of Fischer von Erlach's (1656-1723) Outline on the History of Architecture.

1. Pyramid of Cheops created 2550 BC. e., place: Giza (Egypt), created: Egyptians, the only one of the "miracles" that has survived to this day, the purpose of the building: Tomb of Pharaoh Cheops

2. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon created 600 BC. e. , place: Babylon (Iraq), created: Babylonians, cause of destruction: After the 1st century BC. e. earthquake, Were created for the wife of King Nebuchadnezzar II.

3. The statue of Zeus at Olympia was created in 435 BC. e., sculptor Phidias, place: Olympia (Greece), created: Greeks, cause of destruction: V-VI centuries. burned down in Constantinople during a fire at the Hippodrome in the 5th century. temple statue in the temple of Zeus at Olympia

4. The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus was built in 550 BC. e. , place: Ephesus (Turkey), created: Lydians, Greeks, Persians, cause of destruction: 370 BC e. or 356 BC e. (Herostratus) or 262 AD e. (Goths), cause of destruction: the fire was built in honor of the goddess Artemis
5. The mausoleum in Halicarnassus was created in 351 BC. e. , place: Halicarnassus (in the southeast of Turkey), created: Carians, Persians, Greeks, cause of destruction: 1494 earthquake; preserved: foundations, architectural fragments; in the British Museum in London - statues of Mausolus and his wife Artemisia, reliefs, statues of lions were erected as a tombstone of the Carian ruler Mausolus by his wife - Queen Artemisia

6. The Colossus of Rhodes was created between 292 and 280. BC e. , place: Rhodes (Greece), created: Greeks, cause of destruction: 224 (or 226) BC e. the bronze case was dismantled in 654 AD. e. earthquake was erected by the sculptor Chares to commemorate the victory of Rhodes over Demetrius Poliorcetes (304 BC).

7. The lighthouse of Alexandria was built in the 3rd century BC. e. , place: Alexandria (Egypt), created: Ptolemaic Dynasty, cause of destruction: 303 BC e. - 1480 AD e. (stood for 1500 years) The earthquake light of this lighthouse was very useful for shipping.