CN Tower

CN Tower

Each year, approximately 2 million people visit the CN Tower to take in the breath-taking view and enjoy all the attractions it has to offer.The CN Tower was built in 1976 by Canadian National (CN) who wanted to demonstrate the strength of Canadian industry by building a tower taller than any other in the world. In 1995, the CN Tower became a public company and ownership of the Tower was transferred to Canada Lands (CLC) Company, a federal Crown corporation responsible for real estate development.
Although the CN Tower inspires a sense of pride and inspiration for Canadians and a sense of awe for tourists, its origins are firmly rooted in practicality. The construction boom in Toronto in the 1960's transformed the skyline characterized by relatively low buildings into one dotted with skyscrapers. These new buildings caused serious communication problems. With its microwave receptors at 338 m (1,109 ft.) and 553.33m (1,815 ft., 5 inches) antenna, the CN Tower swiftly solved the communication problems with room to spare. As a result people living in the Toronto area now enjoy some of the clearest reception in North America.

Transamerica Pyramid - San Francisco, CA

Transamerica Pyramid - San Francisco, CA

"Built on the location of the historic Montgomery Block, it has a structural height of 260 meters (853 ft) and contains 48 floors of retail and office space. Construction began in 1969 and finished in 1972. It is currently ranked as the 100th tallest building in the world. Transamerica moved their headquarters to the new building from across the street, where they used to be based in another pyramid-shaped building now occupied by the Church of Scientology of San Francisco.
Its unique shape is the result of the desire by Transamerica to have a building whose top would be looked up to by the executives on the highest floor of the 555 California Street, which is not only tall but also sits upon a substantially higher elevation. The land use and zoning restrictions for the parcel limited the number of square feet of office that could be built upon the lot, which sits at the northern boundary of the financial district. The pyramid is an innovative solution to this design challenge, and when viewed from the East Bay forms a prominent and unique skyline projection, forming an important element of San Francisco's "signature skyline".
Although it no longer houses the headquarters of the Transamerica Corporation, it is still strongly associated with the company and is depicted in the company's logo. The building is evocative of San Francisco and has become one of the many symbols of the city. Designed by architect William Pereira, it faced considerable opposition during its planning and construction, and was sometimes referred to by detractors in derogatory slang.
In 1999, Transamerica was acquired by Dutch insurance company AEGON. When the non-insurance operations of Transamerica were later sold to GE Capital, AEGON retained the building as an investment.
The building is a tall, four-sided pyramid with two "wings" on opposite sides of the building. The wing to the east of the building contains an elevator shaft, while the wing to the west contains a stairwell and a smoke tower. The top 64.6 meters (212 ft) of the building is the spire. There are four cameras pointed in the four cardinal directions at the top of this spire forming a virtual observation deck. Four monitors in the lobby, whose direction and zoom can be controlled by visitors, display the cameras' views 24 hours a day. An observation deck on the 27th floor was closed after the September 11, 2001 attacks, and replaced by the virtual observation deck. The top of the Transamerica Pyramid is covered with aluminum panels. During the holiday season, Thanksgiving, and 4th of July, a bright, white light is lit on top of the pyramid.
The Transamerica Pyramid was the tallest skyscraper west of the Mississippi from 1972-1974 (surpassing the nearby 555 California Street), at which point it was surpassed by the Aon Center in Los Angeles, which was designed by Pereira's former business partner Charles Luckman.
The building is considered to have been the intended target of a foiled terrorist attack, involving the hijacking of airplanes as part of Oplan Bojinka, which was foiled in 1995."

Empire State Building - New York City, New York

Empire State Building - New York City, New York

The epitome of big buildings, billed as the Eighth Wonder of the World at its opening, the Empire State Building broke records in many categories, including height (1250 feet) and construction time (it took only one year and forty-five days to build).
Planned during the booming 1920's, it was constructed during the Depression. Largely vacant in its early years, it was said that the building relied on the stream of sightseers to the observation decks to pay its taxes.
On July 28, 1945, a ten-ton B-25 bomber, lost in the fog, slammed into the north wall of the 78th and 79th floors. The plane's wings were sheared off by the impact, while the fuselage and other parts tore through inner walls, some parts coming out the opposite side of the building. Despite massive holes in those two walls, as well as damage to two supporting steel beams, there was no important structural damage done to the building.
Stunning in both its height and simplicity, the building's sleek limestone and stainless steel design rises in a stunning series of setbacks ending with a bold seven-hundred foot tower, which was originally intended as a mooring dock for dirigibles. In 1950, the addition of a television antenna added another 225 feet to the building.
The Empire State Building's two-story high ground floor corridors are crossed at intervals by stainless steel and glass-enclosed bridges.
Since the World Trade Center disaster, the Empire State Building has regained it's title of tallest building in New York. Prior to the World Trade Center's construction, the Empire State Building was the highest point from which to broadcast radio and television signals. Once built, not only did the Trade Center towers block these signals, it also became the highest point from which to broadcast. Nearly all broadcasters moved their expensive equipment to the new twin towers.

Trinity Church - Boston, MA, USA

Trinity Church - Boston, MA, USA

Trinity Church is located in the Copley Square section of Boston and is an iconic structure there which contrasts nicely against the blue mirror glass of the Hancock Tower next to it. The congregation was originally established in 1733. When their church burned down in the Great Fire of 1872, they wanted to rebuild. Their Rector, Phillips Brooks, a well known preacher of the time, convinced the congregation to have his friend, H. H. Richardson design the new building. The building was located in the newly filled in Back Bay section of Boston. 4500 wooden pilings support the structure. The style was based on Roman and Spanish designs, and became known as "Richardsonian Romanesque". Richardson's reputation rose from this design, and he went on to design many more structures.
The church is a modified cross design and has many features, including stained glass windows and mosaics, some of which were designed and built by John LaFarge, who, from this project, improved methods in making stained glass windows.

St Basil's the Blessed, Moscow

St Basil's the Blessed, Moscow

Founded by Ivan the Terrible in 1554, the building is actually a collection of nine separate chapels. The interior is a stunning example of medieval painted walls, beautiful icons and fine woodwork.
St Basil's true name is the Cathedral of Intercesssion of the Virgin on the Moat, but I personally like it common name better.
The remarkable exterior is dominated by the onion domes with their individual designs and colours.

Marin County Civic Center - San Rafael, CA

Marin County Civic Center - San Rafael, CA

"Marin County Civic Center, the last commission by Frank Lloyd Wright, is located in San Rafael, California. Groundbreaking for the Civic Center Administration Building took place in 1960, after Wright's death, and was completed in 1962. The Hall of Justice was begun in 1966 and completed in 1969. Veterans Memorial Theater (Auditorium) opened in 1971, and the Exhibit Hall opened in 1976. The Marin County Civic Center is a state and National Historic Landmark. The nearby fairgrounds house the Marin County Fair each July."

National Center for Atmospheric Research Mesa Lab—Boulder, Colorado

National Center for Atmospheric Research Mesa Lab—Boulder, Colorado

This building is on a mesa just outside Boulder; in fact the grounds are a nature preserve. Due to this height, it is one of the first parts of Boulder that you can see if you drive in on highway 93. There is a small science museum (free admission) with guided tours at noon, open to the public 8-5 on weekdays, 9-4 on weekends and holidays. It was used as a location in the Woody Allen movie "Sleeper" because of the unusual shape
"You just cannot compete with the scale of the Rockies. So we tried to make a building that was without the conventional scale you get from recognizable floor heights—as in those monolithic structures that still survive from the cliff-dwelling Indians."
— I.M. Pei

The Colossus of Rhodes

The Colossus of Rhodes was

A 30-m (100-ft) bronze statue of the Greek sungod Helios, erected about 280 BC to guard the entrance to the harbor at Rhodes; itwas destroyed about 55 years later. The Colossus of Rhodes was a great bronzestatue, erected in about 280 BC by the citizens of Rhodes, capital of the Greek islandof the same name. It represented their sun-god Helios and was said to be 105 feethigh. According to legend, it straddled the harbor entrance, but it is more likelythat it stood to one side. The statue was overthrown by an earthquake in 224 BC butits huge fragments long were regarded with wonder. Nearly a thousand years later,in AD 656, a Muslim dealer bought the fragments as old metal and carried them awayto be melted down.The old engraving of the Colossus of Rhodes is purely imaginaryand is based on the legend that the statue stood astride the harbor entrance.

Tempietto of San Pietro

"The Tempietto in the cloister of San Pietro in Montorio was built by Bramanate after 1502, on the commission of the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile. The emphasis here is on the harmony of proportions, the simplicity of volumes (cylinder, hemisphere) and the sobriety of the Doric Order. The circular plan symbolizes divine perfection. Inspired by ancient temples, the Tempietto is both a homage to antiquity and a Christian memorial."

The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus (circa 353 BC)

The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus (circa 353 BC)

Was a monumental marble tomb,decorated by the leading sculptor of the age, for King Mausolus of Caria in AsiaMinor; only fragments remain. The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, also in Asia Minor,derived its name from King Mausolus of Caria. After his death in the middle ofthe 4th century BC, his queen, Artemisia, employed Greek architects to constructa superb monument over his remains. It was a great rectangular pile of masonry, surmountedby an Ionic colonnade supporting a rooflike pyramid. At the apex stood a four-horsechariot in which were statues of the king and queen. So famous was this structurethat the word mausoleum came to be applied to any monumental tomb. Some relics ofthe original Mausoleum are preserved in the British Museum.Only crumbling fragmentsremain of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus on the coast of Asia Minor. It was raisedto the memory of King Mausolus of Caria by his devoted Queen, Artemisia.

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Perhaps built by King Nebuchadnezzar II about600 BC, were a mountainlike series of planted terraces.The Hanging Gardens ofBabylon have long since disappeared. They were said to have been built by King Nebuchadnezzarin the 6th century BC to please and console his favorite wife, Amytis. Great terracesof masonry were built one on top of the other. On these were planted gardens of tropicalflowers and trees and avenues of palms. They were irrigated by water pumped fromthe Euphrates River. Nebuchadnezzar and his queen could sit in the shade and lookdown upon the beauties of the city. The walls of Babylon were often included withthe Hanging Gardens among the wonders of Babylon. Built by Nebuchadnezzar, they werefaced with glazed tile and pierced by openings fitted with magnificent brass gates.Accordingto tradition, the homesickness of a favorite wife prompted Nebuchadnezzar, king ofBabylon, to build the famous Hanging Gardens. Nothing remains of these luxuriantterraces.

The Pharos of Alexandria (circa 280 BC)

The Pharos of Alexandria (circa 280 BC)

located on an island in the harborof Alexandria, Egypt, was a famous ancient lighthouse standing more than 134 m (440ft) tall; it was destroyed in the 14th century.The Pharos of Alexandria,in Egypt, was the forerunner of modern lighthouses. The name belonged originallyto an island lying off the coast. When Alexander the Great laid out the city he connectedthe island of Pharos with the mainland by means of a mole, or causeway.On theeastern point of the island his successors, Ptolemy I and Ptolemy II, erected a greatlighthouse made of white marble. It was this structure, said to have been 400 feethigh, that came to be known as the Pharos of Alexandria. For more than 1,000years the lighthouse known as Pharos of Alexandria guided Mediterranean ships toharbor. Built for Ptolemy II of Egypt in about 280 BC, the lighthouse was severelydamaged by an earthquake in AD 955 and disappeared completely by 1500.

THE TAMPLE OF ARTIMIS EPHESIS

THE TAMPLE OF ARTIMIS EPHESIS.

Is it simply a temple? How could it take its place among other unique structures such as the Pyramid, the Hanging Gardens, and the Colossus of Rhodes? For the people who actually visited it, the answer was simple. It was not just a temple... It was the most beautiful structure on earth... It was built in honor of the Greek goddess of hunting and wild nature. That was the Temple of Artemis (Diana) at Ephesus.
Location The ancient city of Ephesus near the modern town of Selcuk, about 50 km south of Izmir (Smyrna) in Turkey.
HistoryAlthough the foundation of the temple dates back to the seventh century BC, the structure that earned a spot in the list of Wonders was built around 550 BC. Referred to as the great marble temple, or temple D, it was sponsored by the Lydian king Croesus and was designed by the Greek architect Chersiphron. It was decorated with bronze statues sculpted by the most skilled artists of their time: Pheidias, Polycleitus, Kresilas, and Phradmon.
The temple served as both a marketplace and a religious institution. For years, the sanctuary was visited by merchants, tourists, artisans, and kings who paid homage to the goddess by sharing their profits with her. Recent archeological excavations at the site revealed gifts from pilgrims including statuettes of Artemis made of gold and ivory... earrings, bracelets, and necklaces... artifacts from as far as Persia and India.
On the night of 21 July 356 BC, a man named Herostratus burned the temple to ground in an attempt to immortalize his name. He did indeed. Strangely enough, Alexander the Great was born the same night. The historian Plutarch later wrote that the goddess was "too busy taking care of the birth of Alexander to send help to her threatened temple". Over the next two decades, the temple was restored and is labeled "temple E" by archeologists. And when Alexander the Great conquered Asia Minor, he helped rebuild the destroyed temple.
When St Paul visited Ephesus to preach Christianity in the first century AD, he was confronted by the Artemis' cult who had no plans to abandon their goddess. And when the temple was again destroyed by the Goths in AD 262, the Ephesians vowed to rebuild. By the fourth century AD, most Ephesians had converted to Christianity and the temple lost its religious glamor. The final chapter came when in AD 401 the Temple of Artemis was torn down by St John Chrysostom. Ephesus was later deserted, and only in the late nineteenth century has the site been excavated. The digging revealed the temple's foundation and the road to the now swampy site. Attempts were recently made to rebuilt the temple, but only a few columns have been re-erected.
DescriptionThe foundation of the temple was rectangular in form, similar to most temples at the time. Unlike other sanctuaries, however, the building was made of marble, with a decorated façade overlooking a spacious courtyard. Marble steps surrounding the building platform led to the high terrace which was approximately 80 m (260 ft) by 130 m (430 ft) in plan. The columns were 20 m (60 ft) high with Ionic capitals and carved circular sides. There were 127 columns in total, aligned orthogonally over the whole platform area, except for the central cella or house of the goddess.
The temple housed many works of art, including four ancient bronze statues of Amazons sculpted by the finest artists at the time. When St Paul visited the city, the temple was adorned with golden pillars and silver statuettes, and was decorated with paintings. There is no evidence that a statue of the goddess herself was placed at the center of the sanctuary, but there is no reason not to believe so.
The early detailed descriptions of the temple helped archeologists reconstruct the building. Many reconstructions such as that by H.F. von Erlach depicted the façade with a four-column porch which never existed. More accurate reconstructions may give us an idea about the general layout of the temple. However, its true beauty lies in the architectural and artistic details which will forever remain unknown.

The 12-m (40-ft) Statue of Zeus

The 12-m (40-ft) Statue of Zeus (mid-5th century BC)

by the Greek sculptorPhidias was the central feature of the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, Greece. Thestatue of Olympian Zeus was erected at Olympia, in the Peloponnesus of Greece, bythe great sculptor Phidias in the 5th century BC. It was a towering structureof ivory and gold, 40 feet high, majestic and beautiful.After about 10 centuriesof existence the statue was destroyed. Our only idea of it is gained from coins ofElis, which are thought to bear copies of the original.The ivory and gold statueof the Olympian Zeus was perhaps the greatest masterpiece of the sculptor Phidias.It stood in a shrine on the Olympian plain until the early Middle Ages.

The Pyramids of Egypt

The Pyramids of Egypt, built at Giza during the 4th Dynasty (circa 2680-c.2544 BC)
Are the oldest of the seven wonders and the only ones remaining intact today.Thegreat pyramids of Egypt still stand. They were built between 2650 and 2500 BC. Exceptfor parts of the Mausoleum and of the temple of Artemis, they are the only one ofthe seven ancient wonders still standing.Of the seven wonders of the ancientworld, only the pyramids of Egypt have survived in a form that resembles their originalcondition. The largest of the three, known as the Great Pyramid of Khufu, was madeof approximately 2.3 million blocks of stone each weighing an average of 2.5 tons.Located in Giza on the west bank of the Nile River, near Cairo, the pyramids remainone of the engineering marvels of all time.