December 7, 2006. Copyright 2006, Graphic News. All rights reserved

Global quest to identify new Seven Wonders of the World
By Elisabeth Ribbans

LONDON, December 7, Graphic News:  The Eiffel Tower is the most visited and perhaps the best known monument in the western world. When it was built in 1889, it was the tallest man-made structure on earth and, although it has long since been dwarfed in size, the Parisian landmark still has gigantic appeal, attracting six million wide-eyed tourists every year.

Does that make it a modern wonder -- a contemporary equivalent to the Lighthouse of Alexandria, which more than 2,000 years ago was also the worldÕs tallest building? Or is it no more than a feat of French engineering fancy by comparison with IndiaÕs magnificent Taj Mahal, a mausoleum studded with jade, crystal, marble and sapphire transported to Agra by an army of 1,000 elephants?

That question is about to be answered as part of a multimedia quest to select seven new wonders of the world. In what organisers of the New 7 Wonders (www.new7wonders.com) campaign claim is the biggest-ever global poll, millions of people have voted, mostly online, for their favourite iconic buildings.

Joining the Eiffel Tower and the Taj Mahal in a shortlist of 21 are the Statue of Liberty in New York; the Pyramids of Giza; Machu Picchu in Peru; the Acropolis in Athens; TurkeyÕs Haghia Sophia; the Kremlin and St BasilÕs Cathedral in Moscow; the Colosseum in Rome; GermanyÕs Neuschwanstein Castle; BritainÕs Stonehenge; SpainÕs Alhambra palace; the Great Wall of China; JapanÕs Kiyomizu Temple; Sydney Opera House; CambodiaÕs Angkor Wat temple; Timbuktu, now in Mali; Petra in Jordan; RioÕs Statue of Christ the Redeemer; the stone sculptures of Easter Island; and Chichen Itza, Mexico.

The finalists were drawn up from a list of 77 candidates by a panel of expert judges, including architects Zaha Hadid from the UK, Tadao Ando of Japan and Cesar Pelli from the U.S., and chaired by the former head of the UNÕs cultural agency (Unesco), Professor Federico Mayor.

Next July -- on the seventh day of the seventh month of 2007, and following a six-month, five-continent tour by judges to the 21 sites -- the new and inevitably controversial list of seven wonders will be unveiled in Lisbon, Portugal.

Of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World -- the Temple of Artemis, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes, the Lighthouse of Alexandria, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia and the Pyramids of Giza -- only the pyramids still stand. Built between 2600 and 2500 BC from five million limestone blocks, they are now in the running to hold a unique position as both an ancient and modern wonder.

The campaign to revive the concept of man-made wonders is the brainchild of Swiss film producer, author and aviator Bernard Weber, who launched the initiative in 2000 to identify the buildings and monuments that Òhave truly global meaning as part of our common cultural heritageÓ.

Unlike the ancient wonders, chosen in 200 BC by one man, Philon of Byzantium, the selection of the new wonders has involved more than 20 million votes in what Weber describes as a Òcompletely unprecedented global grassroots electionÓ.

And whereas PhilonÕs marvels were all located around the Mediterranean basin, the then known world, the new project has seen lobbying for creations as architecturally diverse and geographically widespread as the Panama Canal, the London Eye, the Nazca Lines in Peru and the Terracotta Warriors of China.

Half the profits from the campaign will be donated for the restoration and preservation of buildings and monuments around the world.
/ENDS