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The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: An Extraordinary New Journey Through History's Greatest Treasures | Bettany Hughes
2 posts | 1 read | 1 to read
SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER • From the award-winning historian and broadcaster comes an immersive, awe-inspiring tour of the ancient sites that kindle our imagination and afford us a glimpse into our shared history “This fascinating book is brimming with stories of people and places, all told with Bettany’s natural sense of wonder and adventure.” —Simon Sebag Montefiore, New York Times bestselling author of The World For millennia, the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World have been known for their aesthetic sublimity, ingenious engineering, and sheer, audacious magnitude: The Great Pyramids of Giza, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Temple of Artemis, the Statue of Zeus, the Mausoleum of Halikarnassos, the Colossus of Rhodes, and the Lighthouse at Alexandria. Echoing down time, each of these persists in our imagination as an emblem of the glory of antiquity, but beneath the familiar images is a surprising, revelatory history. Guiding us through it is historian Bettany Hughes, who has traveled to each of the sites to uncover the latest archaeological discoveries and bring these monuments and the distinct cultures that built them back to breathtaking life. Spellbinding, richly illustrated, and full of insight, The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is a journey into the indomitable ambition and creativity of the human spirit.
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review
TheEllieMo
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Mehso-so

I absolutely adore Bettany Hughes. Her TV shows and in-person talks are fascinating and engaging.

But I have to say, I found this a bit of a slog to get through at times :-(. Lots of good info but not as engaging as the author herself.

EllanaRose In my experience the TV shows tend to lean "beginner friendly" whereas the books she releases are a mix of that and more specialist. It makes the books a little more difficult to get through at times, you're not alone in not loving it! It's a brilliant concept though, to cover so much information in so little 1mo
TheEllieMo @EllanaRose good point; I probably went into the book expecting a more conversational style. 4w
30 likes2 comments
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NotCool
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I have a question. The author of 7 wonders is writing about the temple of Artemis and says that bees were her symbol. Her priestesses were called honeybees. And for a sec that made sense, then I remembered the long history of male scientists (hilariously) thinking the queen bee was a king. Were bees her symbol cause there were lots of bees in the area, cause everyone liked honey, or did ancient people know something later naturalists forgot?