7 Wonders of the World

We often hear about the 7 Wonders of the World, both ancient and modern.

But what about wonders of the Medieval Age?

Here are seven — and what happened to them... 

There's no "official" list of wonders built in the Middle Ages like for antiquity. The 7 ancient wonders list was proposed by Ancient Greeks, and endured to today.

So here are suggestions — sadly, most are long lost to time...

1.) Old London Bridge

By all measures considered a world wonder by medieval Europeans. "Living bridges" were common in the Middle Ages and London's was the greatest — people even flocked to it for religious pilgrimage.

Completed in 1209, it was a 900 foot marvel that peaked at some 300 homes and shops, inside structures that were 6 stories high.

It stood for 600+ years, and was only demolished in the 19th century when a wider road was needed.

2.) The Round City of Baghdad

1,200 years ago, Baghdad was the world's largest city, with 1.5 million living there. The Round City was an architectural wonder at its core, a meticulously planned, perfect circle with a 1km radius...

It boasted the largest medieval library in the Islamic world, housing the rarest Greco-Arabic texts in existence.

When the Mongols sacked it in 1258, the Tigris ran black with the ink — and the Round City never recovered.

3.) Tenochtitlan / Templo Mayor

To Spanish forces arriving in the 16th century, the floating city built by the Aztecs was utterly majestic. At the middle was the Templo Mayor — the very center of the Aztec worldview.

The masonry was of astonishing quality and beauty according to Spanish soldiers. It all floated upon Lake Texcoco: a system of exquisite canals and gardens surrounding the Great Temple.

And yet, horrified by the brutal human sacrifice that took place here, Spanish conquerors reduced Tenochtitlan and its temple to rubble — putting a spiritual end to the barbarism.

Only its foundations can be seen today.

4.) Ely Cathedral

It's impossible to pick one great cathedral, but Ely Cathedral in England is traditionally counted in the 7 medieval wonders — for its unique octagonal lantern in the Decorated Gothic style.

5.) The Bologna Towers

The "Manhattan of the Middle Ages". The city of Bologna may have had 200 towers in the 12th and 13th centuries. They were mostly around 25 meters but some as high as 100 meters...

We don't know exactly why they built them, but probably for defensive purposes.

Over the centuries, they either collapsed or were demolished, although a few are still standing:

6.) Porcelain Tower of Nanjing

To people of the Middle Ages, this was a world wonder. A huge pagoda, built during the Ming Dynasty (15th century) — but unusually from white porcelain, not wood.

Taiping revolutionaries destroyed it in the 1850s, to smash its Buddhist images.

7.) The Hagia Sophia

This of course still stands, but as history tells us, it's not nearly as glorious as it once was. Byzantine emperor Justinian set out in the 6th century to build the greatest church the world had ever seen...

Medieval travellers to Constantinople couldn't believe their eyes — encased in white marble, and unimaginably opulent inside.

Legends say visitors from Kiev came in the 10th century, to consider converting their people to Christianity...

On entering, they "knew not whether they were in Heaven or on Earth". 

They went home with no doubt — and Vladimir the Great converted the Kievan Rus virtually overnight...