The New 7 wonders of the World

[sylvanllewelyn]

So the world's finally fed up with the Greco-centric view of the 7 wonders of the world. They've decided to settle this once and for all:

http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php?id=426

Acropolis of Athens, Athens, Greece
Alhambra, Granada, Spain
Angkor Wat, Angkor, Cambodia
Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico
Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Colosseum, Rome, Italy
Easter Island statues, Chile
Eiffel Tower, Paris, France
Great Wall, China
Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey
Kyomizu Temple, Kyoto, Japan
Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow, Russia
Machu Picchu, Peru
Neuschwanstein Castle, Fussen, Germany
Petra, Jordan
Pyramids of Giza+, Egypt
Statue of Liberty, New York, United States
Stonehenge, Amesbury, United Kingdom
Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
Taj Mahal, Agra, India
Timbuktu, Mali

For a Civ player, even if you don't build wonders, you'd be happy to capture them, so yes, it's definitely relevent.

So... what wonder(s) do you think should/not be in the list?

 

[Bast]

As much as I love the Pyramids why are they in there again? They've already been recognized as the 7 wonders of the ancient world? Do we need to again?

 

[SkippyT]

In our list or on that list?

 

[Julian Delphiki]

So the world's finally fed up with the Greco-centric view of the 7 wonders of the world. They've decided to settle this once and for all:

http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php?id=426

Timbuktu, Mali

I am bit puzzled why there is Timbuktu on the list as WW (its a world heritage site, though). And Sydney opera house is just a building. Very well known around the world but still hardly qualifies as wonder.

Edit. After using my brains i realized that Sydney OH is there because it is the *thing* that people remember from Australia (besides Ayers Rock) and this thing is supposed to have something from every continent. Still not a wonder. In fact the whole thing looks more like "Something known from everywhere around the world".

OT: Anyone else find it amusing that Great Wall is one of cheapest wonders in CIV? While in the real world its almost opposite. It makes sense gamewise, of course.

 

[Antilogic]

Well, my first complaint is the whole "number 7" thing was ignored...let's call them the 21, or 7*3, or something more appropriate wonders of the world.

Second the confusion on the Mali...I think a wonder should be an impressive man-made structure, and I'm confused why an entire city is cited. I also don't think the Sydney Opera House has been around long enough to qualify, but I could be wrong.

 

[SkippyT]

Second the confusion on the Mali...I think a wonder should be an impressive man-made structure, and I'm confused why an entire city is cited. I also don't think the Sydney Opera House has been around long enough to qualify, but I could be wrong.

Well, Machu Picchu is on the list and that's a city..well, a town or whatever you call it
I won't be surprised if Zimbabwe the great will be on some list soon

Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
Statue of Liberty, New York, United States
Neuschwanstein Castle, Fussen, Germany

Those are, on the other hand, not something I'd call a wonder. Remove 'em or something and add something cool and exotic.
And if you have Christ the Redeemer, you're gonna have to have Kaaba and the Buddhist statue in China (don't remember it) and something Jewish. It just doesn't work. I would though accept the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican as a wonder. Even though I'm not catholic. It much better represents catholicism if that's what Christ the Redeemer is supposed to be doing - I don't see any other reason for having it there.

Don't throw Petra at me because it was both Christian and Islamic

My idea of a wonder is something you shake from seeing - something brilliant. On this list there the Fussen Castle might qualify but it just ain't really nothing but a castle. If you have to have a castle you might add Bled castle in Slovenia..well, maybe not. Let's just skip the castle thing. I think they have the Statue of Liberty to represent North-America because Meso-America and South-America have a fabulous candidate (Chichén Itza and Machu Picchu)

 

[Antilogic]

I'm assuming that when they refer to Machu Picchu, they were referring to...never mind, that's the wrong city. Add Machu Picchu to my (?) list.

The reason why I can see the Sistine Chapel as a wonder is because it is a wonder to look at. There is a huge building that has survived centuries with beautiful murals (I guess...is there a technical term to separate walls and ceilings? I'm not a painter). But there are big statues of people all around the world...I'm surprised some of Ramesses II's statues aren't on the list as well.

It looks like they were stretching to pull stuff from some places to complete their world tour. I've never heard of the Alhambra, but it looks like an impressive building. Maybe I should read a little more about it.

 

[Lockesdonkey]

The Statue of Liberty makes sense. It's a genuine marvel of 19th-century engineering, not to mention very nice to look at. Plus, if the Colossus of Rhodes made the Greeks' list, why not the "New Colossus" of New York? It may not be the biggest or tallest statue in the world, but most of the taller statues don't have the same kind of global symbolic appeal that the Statue of Liberty does.

 

[a4phantom]

See the Sistine Chapel with your own eyes before you decide it's not a Wonder.

 

[Mr. Civtastic]

I always enjoy reading people's top ten lists. Its subjective and I find them interesting. I see this as yet another one of those lists...how many times have different people, organizations, and publications done something like this? And do you (or they) honestly think that people will stop making lists and say "look, there is no need to debate this...New7Wonders made a list and its final". No. Especially if they add some of the "wonders" that I dont think qualify at all. In my opinion, I dont think the pyramids qualify as "new", even though Im a Christian I dont think the redeemer statue should be there, as an American I dont think the Statue of Liberty should be there, scratch the cities because I can think of countless cities that might also qualify (rome comes to mind), and the sydney opera house? Come on.

 

[a4phantom]

Hey Mr. Civtastic, I'll sell you the naming rights to every star in the sky for $5 (cash) each!

 

[StarWorms]

So the world's finally fed up with the Greco-centric view of the 7 wonders of the world. They've decided to settle this once and for all:

http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php?id=426

Acropolis of Athens, Athens, Greece
Alhambra, Granada, Spain
Angkor Wat, Angkor, Cambodia
Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico
Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Colosseum, Rome, Italy
Easter Island statues, Chile
Eiffel Tower, Paris, France
Great Wall, China
Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey
Kyomizu Temple, Kyoto, Japan
Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow, Russia
Machu Picchu, Peru
Neuschwanstein Castle, Fussen, Germany
Petra, Jordan
Pyramids of Giza+, Egypt
Statue of Liberty, New York, United States
Stonehenge, Amesbury, United Kingdom
Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
Taj Mahal, Agra, India
Timbuktu, Mali

For a Civ player, even if you don't build wonders, you'd be happy to capture them, so yes, it's definitely relevent.

So... what wonder(s) do you think should/not be in the list?

A wonder should be just that - something that seems so advances for its time and is breathtaking/fascinating. The Pyramids are a good example of a wonder. The Sydney Opera House is a very poor example.

 

[sylvanllewelyn]

If possible, the choices should be
- more advanced and impressive than it's times
- representative of the culture and the pinnicle of their social/scientific/militaristic achievements
- has a strong cultural influance on the past, the present and the future

My own personal list, after research into history and all the amazing details of the buildings:

4 obvious ones...
Acropolis of Athens, Athens, Greece
Colosseum, Rome, Italy
Great Wall, China
Pyramids of Giza+, Egypt

And the 3 underrated choices:
Machu Picchu, Peru: A large city, with an advanced design and a social structure to back it up, and irrigation systems that are usable and are being used again... after a few CENTURIES of neglect. All that in totally impossible altitudes, terrain and surroundings.

Alhambra, Granada, Spain: The buildings and the area itself is not as impressive as Versailles, but the details... how they keep the temperature constant, how the place is designed for easy maintenance, the cultural conflux behind the design... science beyond its times

Stonehenge, Amesbury, United Kingdom: Most people have heard of their physical orientation and the winter solstice, but what most do not understand is that even long before the final form, various forms of impressive buildings of wood are made in the place already, some of which are BEFORE 3000BC. Even the fact that the same spot being used for two-thousand years, suggests something very sacred and powerful.

 

[kcbrett5]

Well, my first complaint is the whole "number 7" thing was ignored...let's call them the 21, or 7*3, or something more appropriate wonders of the world.

This isn't a final list. The idea is that there will be a vote from these candidates to produce the new 7 Wonders of the World.

 

[StarWorms]

This isn't a final list. The idea is that there will be a vote from these candidates to produce the new 7 Wonders of the World.

A vote?! What a stupid idea - The public are stupid and don't have a clue. I'm not saying that I do either because I don't - I doubt any of us have seen all these wonders. The decision should be made by people who do know what they're doing.

 

[Technocactus]

Parthenon
Pyramids of Giza
Taj Mahal
Statue Of Liberty
Chichen Itza
Great Wall of China
Eiffel Tower

My 7, in no order. I was tempted to put Stonehenge, but decided on Eiffel Tower.

 

[Lockesdonkey]

Well, the Colossus in Rhodos was a marvel at the time. The Statue of Liberty ain't that today... Nothing wonderous about it.

Except that the Statue of Liberty was considered to be a wonder at the time; engineers admired the pioneering frame ("Nice work, Gustave, could you build us a tower now? Yes, you can build it right on the Champ de Mars by the Seine"), artists liked the design, and most everyone else said, "Wow. That's a tall statue."

Judge it not for what it would be like to build it today, but rather for what it was actually like to build it then.

 

[sylvanllewelyn]

Keep politics out of this thread, please.

All of these buildings are marvelleous, but not all of them have the deep, subtle cultural influance that is required of a world wonder. For example, the Great Wall is not just a bureaucratic and technological achievement, but influances the world view of the entire people up to today. Or the Hagia Sophia and how much it single-handedly determined European architectural styles even through the Renaissance and beyond (the sad thing is, it almost gets 100% votes as the eighth wonder. That sucks).

I have strong personal preferences, but the only one that I am adamantly against is the Sydney Opera House. That's pathetic.

 

[drkodos]

Keep politics out of this thread, please.

That is sort of a silly request since politics are involved in the selection process to begin with. The very idea of allowing people to make selections is in and of itself, a political process.

All of these buildings are marvelleous, but not all of them have the deep, subtle cultural influance that is required of a world wonder. For example, the Great Wall is not just a bureaucratic and technological achievement, but influances the world view of the entire people up to today. Or the Hagia Sophia and how much it single-handedly determined European architectural styles even through the Renaissance and beyond (the sad thing is, it almost gets 100% votes as the eighth wonder. That sucks).

I have strong personal preferences, but the only one that I am adamantly against is the Sydney Opera House. That's pathetic.

The whole thing is a popularity contest and has no bearings on how people live their lives. If it does, I strongly suggest they should re-examine themselves and their priorities.

And with reference to the Sydney Opera house, I would ask if you've ever been there, or understand the engineering that was needed to bring it to fruition. I guess if it was a Church or some other religious entity, it would score better in this silly contest.


This should be in Off Topic since it is not about the game whatsoever.

 

[a4phantom]

Except that the Statue of Liberty was considered to be a wonder at the time; engineers admired the pioneering frame ("Nice work, Gustave, could you build us a tower now? Yes, you can build it right on the Champ de Mars by the Seine"), artists liked the design, and most everyone else said, "Wow. That's a tall statue."

Yeah, but when you see her up close she's not as big as you'd expected