History

The origin of the idea of seven wonders of the world dates back to Herodotus (484 BC – 425
BC) and Callimachus (305 BC – 240 BC), who made lists which included the Great Pyramid of
Giza, Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, Temple of Artemis at Ephesus,
Mausoleum of Maussollos at Halicarnassus, Colossus of Rhodes and Lighthouse of Alexandria.
Only the Great Pyramid of Giza is still standing. The other six were destroyed by earthquake,
fire, or other causes.[9]

The finalist candidates for the New Seven Wonders.

According to the New7Wonders milestone page,[10] filmmaker and aviator Bernard Weber
launched the project in September 1999. The project's web site started in 2001.[3]

To be included on the new list, the wonders had to have been built before 2000 and in an
acceptable state of preservation. By November 24, 2005, 177 monuments were up for
consideration. On January 1, 2006, the New7Wonders Foundation said the list had been
narrowed to 21 sites,[11] by its panel of seven architects from five continents: Zaha Hadid, Cesar
Pelli, Tadao Ando, Harry Seidler, Aziz Tayob, Yung Ho Chang and its President, Prof. Federico
Mayor, the former Director General of UNESCO.[12] The list was later reduced to 20, removing
the Pyramids of Giza — the only remaining of the 7 Ancient Wonders of the World — from the
voting and designating it an Honorary New7Wonders Candidate.[13]

The project assigned what it called attributes to each finalist, such as perseverance for the Great
Wall of China, passion for the Taj Mahal, and awe for the Easter Island statues.

A midpoint tally reported a top 10 list which included all 7 winners, plus the Acropolis, Easter
Island, and the Eiffel Tower.[14]

Many monuments were supported by dedicated websites or strong placements on national

websites. National figures and celebrities promoted the New7Wonders campaign in many
countries.[15] New7Wonders stated that it saw its goal of global dialogue and cultural exchange as
having been achieved, thanks to the sheer number of votes cast and the diversity of the voters
registered.[7]

The theme song of the contest was written by Tony Jameson of the UK medieval folk/rock band,
The Dolmen. Members of the band performed the song live at the Lisbon ceremonies.[16]