Ancient Greek and Roman Structures Term Paper

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Ancient Wonders of the World

The classic era in history saw the construction of some of the most remarkable structures the world has ever seen. Of the Seven Wonders of the World, four structures stand out and are the focus of this discussion. These four structures are: The Colossus of Rhodes, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, and the Statue of Zeus at Olympia.

During the period of classical antiquity, and particularly the 1st and 2nd centuries BC, several extraordinary built environments were constructed that have fascinated people across the ages. The classical period is most often associated with the land around the Mediterranean Sea, which encompassed the ancient civilizations of Greece and Rome. The Greco-Roman cultures flourished during the classical era and influenced societies in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa (D' Epiro & Pinkowish).

The Colossus of Rhodes

The Colossus of Rhodes represents the highest achievement of Greek engineering in sculptural form, and it is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The operational word is colossus in that the sculpture was a 98.4 feet high metallic characterization of the Greek sun god Helious (D' Epiro & Pinkowish). Located near the Manraki Harbor in Rhodes, the Colossus of Rhodes marked the way for ships as they entered and left the Harbor (D' Epiro & Pinkowish). As ancient constructions often did, the enormous sculpture designed and constructed by Chares of Lindos commemorated a battle. Demetrius I of Cyprus led a huge invasion that was repelled by the Greeks, and it was this victory that the Colossus marks (D' Epiro & Pinkowish). Ironically, the metal used to construct the Colossus was part of the spoils of war taken from the Cyprus war fleet that had been abandoned (D' Epiro & Pinkowish). Stone was taken from a siege tower to be used as scaffolding for the sculpture, and the metal from combat equipment was smelted and reforged to construct the sculpture.

Ancient writings have been found that describe some phases of the construction of the Colossus. It is believed that an iron "skeleton" of tie bars was built first and overlaid by thin brass plates that were riveted in place (D' Epiro & Pinkowish).

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As the structure rose up, the builders placed stones into the interior of the statue in order to stabilize it by providing weight at the bottom and then tightly compacted stone throughout the sculpture (D' Epiro & Pinkowish). In order to continue building upwards, the workers brought huge amounts of soil to the statue and formed mounds upon which they climbed to work, and then the mounds were taken down once the sculpture was finished (D' Epiro & Pinkowish).

Impressively, the statue was constructed on a pedestal of marble that stood 50 feet tall and had a 60-foot diameter (D' Epiro & Pinkowish). It is notable that the Colossus of Rhodes stood for only 54 years before being destroyed by an earthquake in 226 B.C., which means that the Colossus stood for the briefest time of all the Seven Wonders of the World (D' Epiro & Pinkowish). The Oracle of Delphi asserted that the Greek sun god Helios was offended by the sculptural depiction of him, and he advised the people of Rhodes not to rebuild the statue in order to avoid further natural disasters at Helios' hand (D' Epiro & Pinkowish).

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

Erected as a monument to lost love, the Mausoleum is also one of the Seven Wonders of the World, and its 140-foot tall white marble rise was located where the present day city of Bodrum stands and where Halicarnassus stood circa 377 B.C. (Clayton & Price). A brother and sister ruling pair inherited the kingdom of which Halicarnassus was the capitol (Clayton & Price). When her brother died, the queen was grief stricken; in 350 B.C. The queen decided to construct a tomb to memorialize her husband (Clayton & Price). The dead king's tomb was to be located on top of a hill overlooking the kingdom he won through battle (Clayton & Price). Greek architects and artists were recruited to construct the marble tomb, which was enclosed by decorative walls, 36 columns to hold up the roof, and an expansive courtyard with stone staircases, stone lions,….....

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