Chichen Itza, Mexico
The famous Mayan pyramids of Chichen Itza (chee-chehn
eet-sah) in Maya literally means: "Mouth of the well of the Itza",
the name Chichen Itza is a Mayan word: CHI (mouth), CHEN (well) and ITZA (of
the Itza tribe), it is located a 75 miles east of Merida, the Capital of the
State of Yucatan, Mexico. This archaeological site is rated among the most
important of the Maya culture and covers an area of approximately six square
miles.The architectural characteristics of Chichen Itza and that have a direct
relationship with the Mayan Toltec style are: "El juego de la
Pelota", "El Castillo", "El Grupo de las Mil
Columnas", "El tzompantli", El Edificio de las Aguilas",
"El templo de los Guerrerros", and "El Mercado". All of
these buildings have the same decoration motives found in Tula. The most
frequent representations are warriors and Quetzalcoatl.The main attraction is
the central pyramid, a square-based, stepped pyramid that is approximately 75
feet tall, El Castillo de la Serpiente Emplumada, which means "Castle of
the Plumed Serpent," and is pictured at the top. The plumed serpent is a
popular deity in various Mesoamerican cultures. "El Castillo" is
surely the place where the ceremony of the descent of Kukulkan was held. The
pyramid has special astronomical layout so that a game of light and shadow is
formed. On March 21st the body of the serpent metaphorically descends from the
temple on top of the pyramid and arrives at the heads at the foot of the staircase.Just
beyond El Castillo you will find a large ball court where Mayan men played a
game called pok ta pok. Anthropologists believe that the object of the game was
to hurl a ball through a ring that was mounted on a wall, seven meters above
the ground. The largest Ball Game in Mesoamerica is 168 meters in length and 70
meters in width.The Temple of Chac Mool, upon whose walls and interior pillars
there are richly colored carvings of plumed serpents, warriors, and priests.
The upper building only partially reflects its true grandeur. There are three
sculpted masks with extremely long noses on the outer walls and at the corners.
On the inner walls of the vaults there were murals with scenes of war and daily
life. The altar tables and benches may have served as seats and thrones for
dignitaries.In the "Templo de los Guerreros" there is a temple on the
top part where the entrance columns are typically Toltec. Another one of the
buildings that have a Toltec seal without is the "Muro de los
Craneos". These buildings were destined to be the mausoleums of the tying
up the years. Every 52 years the ancient Mayans and other cultures would tie up
a sheaf of years to end a cycle. Platform of Venus or of the Dance, Sacred Well
or the Well of the Sacrifices, Tzompantli, that displays figures of skulls in
relief.In the Central Group of the Ruins you can find:The Red House or Chichan
Chob, the name of this building, situated upon a high platform, is derived from
the fragments of red paint that were found in its interior. The word
"Chichan Chob" means "small holes" and probably alludes to
its Lime roof comb. The structure is comprised of an antechamber and three
rooms and has a sculptured hieroglyphic inscription in the main chamber. The
building must have had a religious and public use, since there is a Ball Court
joined to its eastern side, with bas-reliefs in the Maya-Toltec style.The
Caracol or Observatory This structure is known as the Observatory due to its
shape and some possible astral associations, since astronomical events
concerning the planet Venus and the setting of the sun during the three windows
in the upper section. The name "Caracol" (conch) comes from the
spiral stairs that lead to the upper part of the building.The Church, This
small building with only one chamber owes its name to its proximity to the so
called "convent" of the Nunnery and to the exuberant decoration on
its upper facade, which rises even higher due to its lofty roof comb. One can
observe large areas covered with the original stucco on the Grecian frets of
the central panel. "Bignosed" masks constitute the main element of
the facade, with a seated figure, god or ancestor integrated upon the nose of
the central mask. There also are figures of the four carriers of the corners of
the sky, "bacabes" or "pauahtunes", kneeling in the side
panels. It’s appearing that the builder had certain difficulties in placing the
three large masks rescued from earlier buildings on the roof comb and opted to
suppress detail. Up to now, it is not known what the function of this building
was, and in spite of the overloaded decoration of the building, it is one of
the best architectural examples of the Puuc style in Chichen Itza.Temple of the
Carved Panels, the name of this building comes from the relieves carved on the
north and south walls of the colonnade, depicting scenes of numerous people,
plants, and animals, both real and imaginary, which are dominated by two warriors.
The statue of Christ the Redeemer is located at the top of Corcovado Mountain. The entire monument of statue of Christ the Redeemer is 38m high with the statue accounting for 30m and overlooking the city of Rio de Janeiro is one of the tallest statues in the world; the span from finger tip to fingertip is 28m and there is a small chapel housed in the base.The reason why it was built was to show that Christ loves all. In Portuguese, this iconic monument is known as Cristo Redentor. Christ the Redeemer was designed by a French sculptor by the name of Paul Landowski and a local engineer named Heitor da Silva Costa was chosen to supervise the entire construction. The statue was built not out of steel but from reinforced concrete as that was considered a more suitable material for the cross shaped statue. The external caps of the idol were constructed in soapstone due to the resistance of this material to the extreme time and also due to its malleability.The statue of Christ the Redeemer can be accessed by the 2.4 meter Corcovado Railway that has the capacity to hold 360 passengers every hour. The trip by rail is approximately 20 minutes and leaves the base each half hour. From the road or the train terminal Christ the Redeemer statue is reached by 222 steps. For those not wishing to make the arduous trek up the mountain, reaching the statue is possible by escalators and elevators.Christ the Redeemer is one of the tourist attractions that every year attracts to more and more visitors. The best time to visit the Christ the Redeemer statue is late afternoon or evening when you can enjoy the splendour of the setting sun while taking in one of the most important landmarks in the world.
The Great Wall of China is a series of stone and
earthen fortifications in China, built, rebuilt, and maintained between the 5th
century BC and the 16th century to protect the northern borders of the Chinese
Empire during the rule of successive dynasties.The steps that form the Great Wall
of China are very steep and tall in some areas. Tourists often become exhausted
climbing the wall and walk no more than a kilometre or two (around a mile). In
some areas the blocks were cemented with a mixture of glutinous rice and egg
white. In the extreme western desert locations, where good materials are
scarce, the wall was constructed from dirt rammed between rough wood tied
together with woven mats.The Wall is included in lists of the "Seven
Medieval Wonders of the World" but was of course not one of the classical
Seven Wonders of the World recognized by the ancient Greeks.It is the world's
longest human made structure, stretching over approximately 6,400 km from
Shanhaiguan in the east to Lop Nur in the west, along an arc that roughly
delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia, but stretches to over 6,700 km
in total. It is also the largest human made structure ever built in terms of
surface area and mass.Three sections are in Beijing municipality, which was
renovated and which is regularly visited by modern tourists. One of the most
striking sections of the Ming Great Wall is where it climbs extremely steep
slopes. It runs 11 kilometres long, ranges from 5 to 8 meters in height, and 6
meters across the bottom, narrowing up to 5 meters across the top. Wangjinglou
is one of Jinshanling's 67 watchtowers, 980 meters above sea level.South East
of Jinshanling, is the Mutianyu Great Wall which winds along lofty, cragged
mountains from the southeast to the northwest for approximately 2.25
kilometers. It is connected with Juyongguan Pass to the west and Gubeikou to
the east. Another notable section lies near the eastern extremity of the wall,
where the first pass of the Great Wall was built on the Shanhaiguan, the first
mountain the Great Wall climbs. Jia Shan is also here, as is the Jiumenkou,
which is the only portion of the wall that was built as a bridge.
Machu Picchu is located on a remote secondary road in
nearly impassable terrain high above the Urubamba River, Machu Picchu sits
nearly 2438 meters (8000 feet) above sea level, on top of a ridge between two
peaks of different size. The name "Machu Picchu" comes simply from
its geography. It literally means "old peak", just as
"Huaynapicchu" is "young peak". The more accurate
translation relates, however, to the concept of size, with Machu Picchu as the
"bigger peak" and Huaynapicchu, the "smaller peak".Machu
Picchu, the most famous citadel of the Incas, is accessible by train from Cusco
or traveling along the Camino Inca. The city was never discovered by the
conquerors Spanish and remained lost for centuries. Machu Picchu is an
architectural jewel, which combine perfectly the architectural style with the
beautiful natural environment that surrounded it. The Beauty and the Mystery of
its walled ruins that once was the palace the thinnest Inca of stone surrounded
by the virginal landscapes, the flora and green jungle bathes its abrupt
topography.The citadel is divided into two sectors: the agricultural and the
urban, where there are main squares, temples, palaces, storehouses, workshops,
stairways, cables and water fountains which run through both sectors, which
measure 20 and 10 hectares respectively. Machu Picchu was built according to
its natural surroundings, with its constructions following the natural curves
and dips and rises in the land.The sector is surrounded by a series of terraces
of different types and sizes which had two main functions: to grow crops and
halt the erosion caused by the rains. The most eye catching terraces lie at the
entrance to the citadel. They begin at the cluster of rooms located at the
entrance and climb up to the top of the mountain until they stop at a large
rectangular room. There are no canals as they were not necessary, as the
constant rains and ever-present humidity allowed the plants to grow without
irrigation. The only water channel that flows through the urban sector crosses
through the central terrace.The control gate is made up of a three walled room
with a view with several windows, which can be found in front of the main
gateway. There is a good panorama from here of the agricultural and urban
sectors and the surrounding landscape. In the upper part, they also found
sculpted stones that belong to the area, which indicated the Incas used the
stones to make offerings to their gods. On this same piece of ground lies a
granite boulder sculpted with steps. But the most striking feature is that it
is pierced with a ring, the purpose of which is unknown.One can see a long
stairway that leads to the front gate. This sector houses the most important
constructions of any Inca city, where one can appreciate the talent, effort and
quality of the pre Hispanic builders, as the constructions are entirely made of
granite, a very hard rock that is different from that used in Cusco. The city
is U-shaped and containing the temples, houses and workshops on platform
terraces that the american scientist Bingham, called the Military Group.The
Temple of Sun is shaped like a semi-circle and built on solid rock, an existing
granite block shaped to blend with the natural curves, with a diameter of 10.50
meters. The Intiwatana is located on a hill made up of several terraces, it is
a granite rock sculpted into three steps. In the central part one can see a
rectangular prism that is 36cm high and which is pointing from North-West to
South-East. Its four corners are directed to the four cardinal points. The
Intiwatana had specific functions: it measured time (the solstice and the
equinox) by using sunlight and shadow, and also served as an altar. In Quechua,
"Inti" means "sun" and "Wata" means
"year", thereby giving us the meaning of a solar year observatory.The
sacred rock, located in a four-sided spot flanked by two three-sided rooms,
features a monolithic rock sculpture. The pedestal, which is approximately 30cm
high, resembles a feline. From another angle, it looks like the profile of a
mountain near Machu Picchu. The Temple of Three Windows is located west of the
main square, has a large rectangular floor. The enormous polyhedrons have been
carved and joined with millimetric precision.The Main Temple is located north
of the Sacred Square, very near the Temple of Three Windows. Doors are a common
sight in Machupicchu and especially in this sector. They vary in texture, size
and architectural style that set them apart from each other, although all have
the same trapezoid shape. To the South of the complex, between the Temple of
the Sun and the Royal Palace, the area houses a series of water fountains, the
only sources of the vital element for the residents of Machu Picchu.
Petra is approximately at 3-5 hours to the south of
modern Amman, approximately 2 hours to the north of Aqaba, on the edges of the
mountain desert of the Wadi Araba. The city is surrounded by the highest hills
of rust by colored sandstone that gives a natural protection to the city
against the invaders.Petra has more than 800 individual monuments, including
buildings, tombs, baths, funeral corridors, temples, arched income, and
adjacent streets, which especially were carved in the kaleidoscopic sandstone
by the technical and artistic genius of their inhabitants. Petra's monuments
are best seen by the visitors at early hours of the morning and last hour of
the evening, when the Sun warms the multicoloured stones.The site is semi arid,
the friable sandstone which allowed the Nabataeans to carve their temples and
tombs into the rock crumbling easily to sand. The colour of the rock ranges
from pale yellow or white through rich reds to the darker brown of more
resistant rocks. The contorted strata of different-coloured rock form whorls
and waves of colour in the rock face, which the Nabataeans exploited in their
architecture.Petra was chosen as the capital of the Nabateans because it was
located in a valley surrounded by Sandstone Mountains. There are many ways to
get into Petra, but none of them are easy, and if the valleys are sealed, it is
almost impossible for anyone to enter.The main entrance to Petra is called the
Siq; it has sides as high as 200 m. This gorge and the temple in the end of it
(the Kazneh) were popularized in the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Of all 800 tombs carved in Petra, the Kazneh is the most famous. His name
Kazneh means "treasure" and comes from the Bedouin belief that the
Pharaoh who prosecutes the Israelites concealed his exchequer in the urn in the
high of the Kazneh. The fronts of tomb were constructed of the top downwards.
The channels were carved in the rock.The Monastery is the largest tomb façade
in Petra, measuring 50 m wide and 45 m high. Despite its name, it was built as
a tomb monument and may have acquired its name from the crosses inscribed
inside. Like the Kazneh, the structure consists of two stories topped by a magnificent
urn.
Rome was a center of learning, trade and commerce for
ages and has contributed significantly in the development of these areas. The
origination of the word “Coliseum”, probably come from colossal statue of Nero
which once stood near the stadium.The discussion of Rome would be unfinished
without the description of so the much talked Roman Colosseum. But non doubt
the architecture and the concept is definitely a matter of appreciation and
pride.Originally was the Flavian Amphitheatre, an elliptical amphitheatre
located in the heart of the city of Rome. It is one of the greatest works of
Roman architecture and Roman engineering. The building was constructed by
emperors of the Flavian dynasty, hence its original name. In antiquity, Romans
may have referred to the Colosseum by the unofficial name Amphitheatrum
Caesareum; this name could have been strictly poetic. The Colosseum or
Coliseum occupies a site just east of the Roman Forum, its construction started
between 70 and 72 AD under the emperor Vespasian, opened by Emperor Titus in 80
AD with 100 days of games which roughly have taken the lives of some nine
thousand animals and remodeled by Domitian who constructed the hypogeum, a
series of underground tunnels used to house animals and slaves. Also he added a
gallery to the top Colosseum to increase its seating capacity.The Coliseum was
used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles, with a capacity of 50 000
spectators. It was used for the next 500 years with the last recorded games
being held there. As well as the traditional gladiatorial games, many other
public spectacles were held there, such as mock sea battles, animal hunts,
executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical
mythology. It ceased to be used for entertainment in the early medieval era and
it was later re-opened for such varied purposes as housing, workshops; quarters
for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry and a Christian shrine.Today the
Colosseum is in a ruined condition, due to damage caused by an earthquakes and
stone-robbers. For a long time it has been seen as an icon symbol of Imperial
Rome. It’s one of modern Rome’s most popular tourist attractions and still has
close connections with the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope
leads torchlight “Way of the Cross” procession to the amphitheatre. The
Coliseum is depicted on the Italian version of the five-cent euro coin.
The Taj Mahal is standing majestically on the right
bank of River Yamuna at a point where it takes a sharp turn and flows
eastwards; the Taj Mahal is synonymous of love and romance. The Taj Mahal
complex is organized in a rectangle, measuring approximately 310 x 550 meters.
It comprises a number of buildings and structures, all functioning together as
the funerary monument for Mumtaz Mahal.The southern gate is similar to the east
and west ones in its verticality. Due to the natural gradient of the site,
which slopes toward the riverbank, this gate lies 2.4 m above the ground
elevation of the Jilaukhana itself. Two bazaar streets begin at the east and
west gates and lead to the Jilaukhana. The bazaars consist of individual rooms
(Hujra) along an arcaded Verandah of multi-cusped arches that are supported on
slender columns. The Jilaukhana consists of a large courtyard with 128 hujra
rooms opening directly onto the courtyard.To the northeast of the Jilaukhana
are the khawasspuras, two residential enclosures. The north side of the
Khawasspuras abuts the southern galleries that flank the great gate to the east
and the west. The outer southern corners of the enclosures in the khawasspuras
have rooms giving access to latrines. The two Saheli Burj (inner subsidiary
tombs) enclosures to the east and west of the Jilaukhana are the tomb complexes
of two other wives of Shah Jahan. The saheli burj enclosures have gardens
arranged in the Chahar Bagh style, with a pool of water in the center
surrounded by paved walkways.The great gate (darwaza-i rauza) is a large
structure with triadic openings the base of the gate measures nearly 38 meters
and its peripheral walls, including the cupolas, are 30 meters in height. The
central Pishtaq, also including the cupolas, is 33 meters in height and 19
meters wide. The gate is composed of red sandstone with decorative panels and
accents in white marble.The two Naubat Khanas (drum houses) are constructed on
raised platforms and have two floors. On each level, the naubat khanas have a
triple archway in the center of the east and west elevations, respectively. On
the ground level, the arches are closed with a Jali screen; on the upper level,
they remain open. The floor slab of the upper story projects beyond the wall
above and below to form a balcony as long as the building; carved red sandstone
handrails run along its length, and carved sandstone brackets help support it
from below. The Tahkhana, a gallery of rooms arranged in a row and connected by
a narrow corridor, is reached by two staircases that descend from openings in
the surface of the plinth to the east and west of the mausoleum.The secondary,
square marble plinth, 93 meters long, is centred on the sandstone terrace. The
mausoleum proper and the four minarets flanking it are placed on this marble
plinth. The base of the plinth is decorated with delicate carvings of vegetal
motifs, which also appear on the white marble cladding of the mausoleum.In the
mausoleum of the Taj Mahal complex, the central chamber is double-height and
octagonal in plan. At its center rest the cenotaphs of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah
Jahan. The chamber is capped by a shallow dome and decorated with niches on
each two-story wall. These niches on the cardinal axes have Jali screens, fitted
on the external faces of the walls, which allow light into the room. The niches
on the diagonal axes hold rectangular doors. The niches are separated into
lower and upper stories by an inscription band that runs around the interior.
On the upper level, these frames are replaced by Muqarnas that begin to
transform the octagonal plan into a circular ring for the dome. The shallow
dome, which is the lower portion of the double dome used for construction, thus
appears as decorated with an extended pattern of the Muqarnas that support its
base.The southwest tower contains a Stepwell (baoli) whereas that to the south
of the Mihmankhana holds chambers leading to latrines. The southwest tower with
the baoli also has a well shaft running down the centre of the structure and
extending through its five floors: three above, two below. The two tower
pavilions north of the mosque and Mihmankhana contain chambers leading to
latrines on the lower levels, and stairs leading toward the riverbed. The four
riverfront towers are each octagonal in plan. Each tower has a central room
with an ambulatory path circling around the exterior. The exterior walls have
multi-cusped blind arches; each terrace has an Oriel window (Jharoka) with
views of the river. The towers are clad in red sandstone and have floral motifs
carved in relief with marble inlays on panels.
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