Pyramids of Giza

The Great Pyramid of Giza stands on the northern edge of the Giza Plateau, located about 10 miles west of Cairo. It is composed of over 2 ½ million blocks of limestone, which weigh from 2 to 70 tons each. It's base covers over 13 acres and its volume is around 90,000,000 cubic feet. You could build 30 Empire State buildings with its masonry. It is 454 feet high which is equivalent to a modern 48-story building. There are currently 203 courses or steps to its summit. Each of the four triangular sides slope upward from the base at an angle of 51 degrees 51 minutes and each side has an area of 5 1/2 acres. The joints between adjacent blocks fit together with optical precision and less than a fiftieth of an inch separates the blocks. The cement that was used is extremely fine and strong and defies chemical analysis. Today, with all our modern science and engineering, we would not be able to build a Great Pyramid of Giza. The Great Pyramid is thought to have been erected around 2600 BC during the reign of  Khufu (Cheops). Next to the Great Pyramid stands 2 additional large pyramids. The slightly smaller one is attributed to Cheop's son and successor , Kephren. The other, still smaller, is attributed to Kephren’s successor, the grandson of Cheops, Mykerionos. To the south-east of the Great Pyramid lies the Sphinx. The total number of identified pyramids in Egypt is about 80.

Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal was built by a Muslim, Emperor Shah Jahan (died 1666 C.E.) in the memory of his dear wife and queen Mumtaz Mahal at Agra, India. It is an "elegy in marble" or some say an expression of a "dream." Taj Mahal (meaning Crown Palace) is a Mausoleum that houses the grave of queen Mumtaz Mahal at the lower chamber. The grave of Shah Jahan was added to it later. The queen’s real name was Arjumand Banu. In the tradition of the Mughals, important ladies of the royal family were given another name at their marriage or at some other significant event in their lives, and that new name was commonly used by the public. Shah Jahan's real name was Shahab-ud-din, and he was known as Prince Khurram before ascending to the throne in 1628.

Colosseum

The building’s dimensions are impressive. It measures 189 meters (615 ft / 640 Roman feet) long and 156 meters (510 ft) wide, with a base area of 6 acres (24,000 m2). The height of the outer wall is 48 meters (157 ft), equivalent to a 12-15 story building. The perimeter originally measured 545 meters (1,788 ft). The central arena is an oval (287 ft) long and (180 ft) wide, surrounded by a wall (15 ft) high. The colossal monument could accommodate more than 50,000 spectators who could enter through 80 entrances. It is elliptical in plan.

Chichen Itza

Just over 100 miles from the glamorous resorts and pristine beaches of Cancun, rests Mexico’s most celebrated historical site. Chichen Itza, once a prominent regional capital of the Mayan civilization, is a sprawling complex of pre-Columbian ruins. Though the city lay neglected until archeologists began exploring and preserving the site in the 1920s, the Mayan capital has become one of Mexico’s most visited attractions. Chichen Itza – meaning “at the mouth of the well of Itza”

Machu Picchu

At the time of Columbus’ landfall on the New World, the greatest empire on earth was that of the Inca. Called Tawantinsuyu or ‘Land of the Four Quarters,’ it spanned more than 4300 miles along the mountains and coastal deserts of central South America. The vast empire stretched from central Chile to present Ecuador-Colombia border and included most of Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, northern Chile and northwestern Argentina (this is a land area equal to the entire portion of the United States from Maine to Florida east of the Appalachians). It exceeded in size any medieval or contemporary European nation and equaled the longitudinal expanse of the Roman Empire. Yet for all its greatness, Tawantinsuyu existed for barely a century.

Christ the Redeemer

Christ the Redeemer, is a statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The statue’s features are  30 metres (98 feet tall), weight 700 tons. It is located at the peak of the 700 m (2,296 ft) Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park overlooking the city. The tallest of its kind in the world.

A symbol of Christianity, the statue has become an icon of Rio and Brazil. When the decision to make such a statue was made. several designs were considered like  a representation of the Christian cross, a statue of Jesus with a globe in his hands, and a pedestal symbolizing the world. But The statue of Christ the Redeemer with open arms was finally decided.