Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal stands in the city of Agra, in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, on the banks of the Yamuna River. It was built in the memory of the beautiful Arjumand Bano Begum, who won the heart of a Mughal prince. She was married at 21 to Emperor Jahangir’s third son Prince Khurram and stayed loyally by his side through good times and bad: in the luxurious royal palaces of Agra as well as the transient tents of war camps. In AD 1628, Khurram became king after a bloody battle of succession: he took the name Shahjahan or “King of the World” and showered his beloved begum with the highest titles. She became Mumtaz Mahal, the exalted of the palace and Mumtaz-ul-Zamani, the exalted of the Age. But Mumtaz Mahal was not destined to be queen for long.

In 1631, Shahjahan went on an expedition to the south and, as always, Mumtaz Mahal accompanied him. But she died in childbirth at Burhanpur. She had borne Shahjahan fourteen children, of whom four sons and three daughters survived. When Mumtaz Mahal died, she was just 39 years old. Shahjahan was inconsolable and contemporary chronicles tell of the royal court mourning for two years. there was no music, no feasting, and no celebration of any kind.

Taj Mahal is one of the most beautiful and costly tombs in the world. The Mughal Emperor Shahjahan ordered it built in memory of his favorite wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1629A.D. It was built by a group of men from India, Persia, Central Asia, and beyond. About 20,000 workmen were employed daily to complete the complex at the expense of 40,000,000 rupees.

machu picchu

                             Almost a century after its archaeological discovery and thanks to recent studies of sixteenth century archival documents, there are good arguments to suppose that the citadel of Machu Picchu was - like the pyramids of the pharaohs in Egypt or the tomb of the emperor Chin Shi Huan in China - the luxurious and well cared for mausoleum of the Inca Pachakuteq, founder and first emperor of Tawantinsuyu.

     7,000 feet above sea level and nestled on a small hilltop between the Andean Mountain Range, the majestic city soars above the Urabamba Valley below. The Incan built structure has been deemed the “Lost Cities”, unknown until its relatively recent discovery in 1911. Archaeologists estimate that approximately 1200 people could have lived in the area, though many theorize it was most likely a retreat for Incan rulers. Due to it’s isolation from the rest of Peru, living in the area full time would require traveling great distances just to reach the nearest village.

                         It must be noted, however, that the places mentioned above, Pisac, Ollantaytambo and Machu Picchu in particular, are known to have been ceremonial sites many centuries and even millennia before the Inca developed and, furthermore, already had existing structures that were used for astronomical observations and ceremonial functions. Many contemporary people writing and speaking about the Inca are not well enough educated to know this matter yet, none the less, it is archaeological fact. The name of the archaeological site is sometimes misspelled as machu pichu, macchu picchu, machu piccu, machupicchu, macu picchu, macho picchu, machu piccho, machu picch, macha picchu, machu piccuh, mach picchu. The correct spelling is Machu Picchu.

petra

                                               Petra was first established sometime around the 6th century BC, by the Nabataean Arabs, a nomadic tribe who settled in the area and laid the foundations of a commercial empire that extended into Syria. Despite successive attempts by the Seleucid king Antigonus, the Roman emperor Pompey and Herod the Great to bring Petra under the control of their respective empires, Petra remained largely in Nabataean hands until around 100AD, when the Romans took over. 

                                             It was still inhabited during the Byzantine period, when the former Roman empire moved its focus east to Constantinople, but declined in importance thereafter. 

                                   The Crusaders constructed a fort there in the 12th century, but soon withdrew, leaving Petra to the local people until the early 19th century, when it was visited by the Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt.

Colosseum

                                                   Construction on the Colosseum began under Emperor Vespasian (69-79) and was completed under his son Titus (79-81) in 80 AD. It was built on the site of an artificial lake created by Nero in this valley between Rome's many hills, in front of his Domus Aurea palace.

The Colosseum also helps us decrypt the Roman society.Everything about the Colosseum is impressive, from the building’s dimensions to the gladiator stories! And Closseum is not just a story! It is one of the most visited places in Rome, Italy.

                                                  The southern side of the Colosseum was felled by an earthquake in 847. Parts of the building - including the marble facade - were used for the construction of later monuments, including the St. peter’s Basilica

     

Christ the Redeemer (statue)

                                           Christ the Redeemer is a statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The statue is 120 ft tall and has a weight of 635 tones. It is now a part of the new Seven Wonders of the World. It is located in the Corcovado Mountain which is at a peak of 700 meters i.e. 2,300 feet in the Tujuca forest National Park overlooking the city. The statue is made of concrete and soapstone. As a symbol of Christianity, it has become an important icon of Brazil, with Jesus Christ appearing to open his arms wide to embrace the entire city below.

               The idea of a religious statue was first conceived in 1921 by Carlos Oswaldo who sketched out a design of Christ carrying a cross. When engineer Heitor da Silva Costa was commissioned to build the monument he enlisted the aid of Polish sculptor Paul Landowski and the design was changed to its current form and it was agreed that the statue would be sculpted in France (unlike the Statue of Liberty it was not a gift from France).

                                        In the evening, powerful spotlights illuminate the statue of Christ, making it glow and appear almost to levitate above the darkened peak. By day or night, no matter where you may go in the city of Rio, the statue has the presence of an icon.

Chichen Itza

                                    Chichen Itza which means “at the mouth of the well of Itza “, is the 2nd most visited archeological site of Mexico today. The Kukulkan Pyramid in Chichen Itza which known as “El Castillo” (the castle), is one of the new seven wonders of the world elected in 07.07.2007. It is exactly 24 m. high considering the upper platform. Apart from the Kukulkan Pyramid, in Chichen Itza there many other archaeological sites to visit, all carrying traces from Mayan Culture in many ways.

                                   It can take a whole day to see the extensive ruins of Chichén Itzá, which occupy 2.5 square miles. At the entrance is a large, modern visitors' centerthat includes a museum, a restaurant, bathrooms, and a bookstore. Here there are licensed guides who speak Spanish or English available for hire. A guide is not necessary, especially if you have a map or guidebook, but he or she can point out details you might otherwise miss and tell interesting stories about the ruins.

                                       The site has two areas: the central "new" zone, which shows distinct Toltec influence, and the southern "old" zone, with mostly Puuc architecture. The most well-known monuments are in the new zone.

Great wall of China

                                                    The Great Wall of China was built over more than two thousand years. Construction on the first section began between the 7th and 6th century BC, and the last work on the wall was done between the 14th and 17th centuries.

                                                         The Great Wall of China is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in northern china, built originally to protect the northern borders of the Chinese empire against intrusions by various nomadic groups. Several walls have been built since the 5th century BC that are referred to collectively as the Great Wall, which has been rebuilt and maintained from the 5th century BC through the 16th century. One of the most famous is the wall built between 220–206 BC by the first emperor of china , qin shi huang. Little of that wall remains; the majority of the existing wall was built during the ming dynasty

                                          

         The Great Wall stretches from Shanghaiing in the east, to lop nur in the west, along an arc that roughly delineates the southern edge of inner Mongolia. The most comprehensive archaeological survey, using advanced technologies, has recently concluded that the entire Great Wall, with all of its branches, stretches for 8,851.8 km (5,500.3 mi). This is made up of 6,259.6 km (3,889.5 mi) sections of actual wall, 359.7 km (223.5 mi) of trenches and 2,232.5 km (1,387.2 mi) of natural defensive barriers such as hills and rivers.