17 Historical Landmarks to See Around the World
Here is the list that we made about 17 Historical Landmarks to See Around the World:
Stonehenge: Salisbury
U.K.Mysterious Stonehenge, Europe’s best-known prehistoric site, likely originated as a sculpted earthwork 5,000 years ago.
Around 2150 B.C., more than 80 bluestones weighing up to 4 metric tons each were transported 240 miles to the site by raft, sleds, and rollers.
Ancestor worship dominated their religious practices, and the tombs of those ancestors dotted the countryside.
Stonehenge sits less than 90 miles southwest of London; trains to Salisbury connect with daily bus tours that include Salisbury Cathedral, Old Sarum (an Iron Age fort), and the Stonehenge visitor center.
Colosseum: Rome
The Colosseum is an oval amphitheater in the center of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum.
It is the largest ancient amphitheater ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheater in the world today, despite its age.
Construction of the Colosseum was begun sometime between 70 and 72 CE during the reign of Vespasian. It is located just east of Palatine Hill, on the grounds of what was Nero’s Golden House.
The artificial lake that was the centerpiece of that palace complex was drained, and the Colosseum was sited there, a decision that was as much symbolic as it was practical.
Vespasian, whose path to the throne had relatively humble beginnings, chose to replace the tyrannical emperor’s private lake with a public amphitheater that could host tens of thousands of Romans.
Independence Hall: Philadelphia
Stand in Independence Hall, the Pennsylvania State House completed in 1753, and relive America’s founding in the heart of historic Philadelphia.
This is where the Declaration of Independence was forged and where, in the summer of 1787, the Constitution was debated behind closed doors.
The legacy of the nation’s founding documents – universal principles of freedom and democracy – has influenced lawmakers around the world and distinguished Independence Hall as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Construction on the building started in 1732. Built to be the Pennsylvania State House, the building originally housed all three branches of Pennsylvania’s colonial government.
The Pennsylvania legislature loaned their Assembly Room out for the meetings of the Second Continental Congress and later, the Constitutional Convention.
Here, George Washington was appointed Commander in Chief of the Continental Army in 1775, the Articles of Confederation were adopted in 1781, and Benjamin Franklin gazed upon the “Rising Sun” chair in 1787.
Petra: Jordan
Experience Petra, an ancient city located 77 miles northeast of the town of Aqaba near the Red Sea, to understand why the setting of “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” is considered one of the new Seven Wonders of the World.
Hike through a narrow, 250-foot-tall slot canyon to see the towering treasury of the Nabataean Kingdom carved into pink sandstone cliffs.
Archaeologists, who’ve uncovered 15% of the site, believe Petra flourished between 400 B.C. and A.D. 106, then fell into ruin.
Stay in modern Petra to check out the site’s stunning theater, royal tombs, market street and other monuments before exploring more of Jordan or nearby Israel.
Moai: Easter Island, Chile
Easter Island’s moai, larger-than-life ancestral figures carved between the 10th and 16th centuries, have intrigued historians since 1722 when a Dutch explorer stumbled upon them while visiting the island.
The approximately 900 moai statues and 300-plus ahu (stone ceremonial platforms) carved of lava tuff are awe-inspiring.
Each moai stands up to 72 feet tall; the unfinished El Gigante megalith weighs 160 to 182 metric tons.
Although you’ll likely spend the bulk of your visit admiring Easter Island’s impressive moai statues, be sure to also check out the mysterious ceremonial village of Orongo and various caves decorated with rock art, pictographs and petroglyphs.
Great Pyramid: Giza, Egypt
The Great Pyramid of Giza (also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops) is the oldest and largest of the pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex bordering present-day Giza in Greater Cairo, Egypt. It is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to remain largely intact.
Egyptologists conclude that the pyramid was built as a tomb for the Fourth Dynasty Egyptian pharaoh Khufu and estimate that it was built in the 26th century BC during a period of around 27 years.
Initially standing at 146.5 meters (481 feet), the Great Pyramid was the tallest man-made structure in the world for more than 3,800 years. Over time, most of the smooth white limestone casing was removed, which lowered the pyramid’s height to the present 138.5 meters (454.4 ft).
Machu Picchu: Peru
Historians believe Machu Picchu was built at the height of the Inca Empire, which dominated western South America in the 15th and 16th centuries.
It was abandoned at the time the Spanish launched their conquest of the magnificent pre-Columbian civilization in the 1530s, some 100 years after it was built.
There is no evidence that the conquistadors ever attacked or even reached the mountaintop citadel, however; for this reason, some have suggested that the residents’ desertion occurred because of a smallpox epidemic.
Many modern-day archaeologists now believe that Machu Picchu served as a royal estate for Inca emperors and nobles.
Others have theorized that it was a religious site, pointing to its proximity to mountains and other geographical features that the Incas held sacred.
Dozens of alternate hypotheses have cropped up in the years since Machu Picchu was first unveiled to the world, with scholars variously interpreting it as a prison, a trade hub, a station for testing new crops, a women’s retreat, or a city devoted to the coronation of kings, among many examples.
Ephesus: Selçuk, Turkey
Ephesus was an ancient port city whose well-preserved ruins are in modern-day Turkey. The city was once considered the most important Greek city and the most important trading center in the Mediterranean region. Throughout history, Ephesus survived multiple attacks and changed hands many times between conquerors.
Ephesus in the UNESCO World Heritage ListThe ancient city Ephesus is located in Selcuk, a small town 30km away from Kusadasi.
Chichén Itzá: Yucatán, Mexico
Chichen Itza was a Mayan city on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. Although it’s an important tourist attraction, Chichen Itza also remains an active archeological site.
New discoveries are still being unearthed in the area, providing even more insight into the culture and accomplishments of the Mayan people, who ruled much of present-day Mexico and Central America prior to the arrival of European colonists.
Chichen Itza was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988 and, in 2007, it was voted in a global survey as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Acropolis: Athens, Greece
Even if you’ve seen the Parthenon replica in Nashville, Tennessee, you’ll never forget a trip to the original hilltop fortress in Athens, Greece.
Athens’ Acropolis encompasses the real Parthenon and other masterpieces of Greece’s Golden Age, including the Propylaia, the Erechtheion and the Temple of Athena Nike (all dedicated to the goddess Athena).
Past travelers recommend wearing sturdy shoes, hiring a guide, and using the south entry near the Theatre of Dionysus to avoid long lines. Don’t miss the life-size Parthenon frieze with casts and original sculptures at the spectacular New Acropolis Museum.
Angkor Wat: Siem Reap, Cambodia
Angkor Wat is an enormous Buddhist temple complex located in northern Cambodia. It was originally built in the first half of the 12th century as a Hindu temple.
Spread across more than 400 acres, Angkor Wat is said to be the largest religious monument in the world.
Its name, which translates to “temple city” in the Khmer language of the region, references the fact it was built by Emperor Suryavarman II, who ruled the region from 1113 to 1150, as the state temple and political center of his empire.
Lalibela: Ethiopia
In a mountainous region in the heart of Ethiopia, some 645 km from Addis Ababa, eleven medieval monolithic churches were carved out of rock.
Their building is attributed to King Lalibela who set out to construct in the 12th century a ‘New Jerusalem’, after Muslim conquests halted Christian pilgrimages to the Holy Land.
Lalibela flourished after the decline of the Aksum Empire.
Auschwitz-Birkenau: Oswiecim, Poland
An iron gate inscribed “Arbeit Macht Frei” (“Work Makes You Free”) leads into Auschwitz-Birkenau, Europe’s largest concentration camp.
Located within 45 miles of both Kraków and Katowice and accessible by train and bus, the haunting Holocaust site features a death camp, a forced labor camp, gas chambers and crematoria operated from 1940 to 1945.
At this site, more than 1.1 million people, mostly Jews, were killed. Due to crowds and restrictions on individual visits, book free entry and a guide (for a fee) online prior to arrival to understand the horrors at both the former Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau camps.
Great Wall of China: Huairou District, China
The world’s largest military structure, the more than 12,400-mile Great Wall of China, was first erected by Emperor Qin Shi Huang around 220 B.C. and continuously expanded through the 17th century.
The easily accessible Badaling section near Beijing is capped at 65,000 visitors daily, while the less crowded western end at Jiayuguan in the Gobi Desert offers carefully restored watchtowers and fortresses built into this architectural wonder.
Spend a week exploring the 14th-century, 36,000-square-foot Jiayuguan Pass, climbing the reconstructed Overhanging Great Wall and visiting the Buddhist caves at Dunhuang and other monuments of the historic Silk Road.
Statue of Liberty: New York City
The Statue of Liberty, a gift from France to the United States. This symbol of freedom stands approximately 305 feet tall and is modeled after the Roman goddess of Liberty.
From 1892 to 1924, the copper lady was the first sight for immigrants traveling to Ellis Island. Digitized records of nearly 65 million passengers and crew can be freely searched at the island’s museum.
Taj Mahal: Agra, India
Historically significant as a masterpiece of Indo-Islamic architecture, the Taj Mahal is considered the world’s finest monument to love.
Commissioned in the 17th century by Emperor Shah Jahan for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, it took 20,000 artisans 22 years to erect and sculpt this towering white marble mausoleum and decorate it with inlaid flowers made of semiprecious stones and calligraphy writings from the Quran.
The Agra landmark’s elaborate gardens, representing the Muslim vision of paradise, feature canals and pools that offer spectacular reflections during full-moon evening viewings.
Old Slave Mart: Charleston, South Carolina
Explore the Old Slave Mart building on cobblestoned Chalmers Street to imagine how Charleston looked when more than 35% of America’s slaves arrived at its port.
Originally connected to a barracoon (slave jail) and a morgue, South Carolina’s only remaining slave auction gallery was converted into a display shed used to sell forced laborers to local plantations from 1859 to 1863.
The building became the Old Slave Mart Museum in 1938 and, with the Avery Research Center and Magnolia Plantation, is a vital element in understanding the American slave trade.
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