vocabulary(1) As ancient civilizations developed, the number of interesting cultural sites proliferated. Ancient travelers recorded their journeys to some of these places. In 140 BC, Antipater of Sidon wrote a short poem about the Seven Wonders of the World. One of these was the Colossus of Rhodes.
A small island in the Aegean Sea, off the coast of what is now Turkey, Rhodes was a vibrant and successful economic center. (2) Because of its economic activity, innumerable people came in and out of Rhodes's harbor daily to trade goods.
People from all over the world admired the Colossus, which towered over the harbor of Rhodes and appeared to gaze out to sea. About 120 feet tall and standing upon a 50-foot pedestal, the impressive bronze statue was a figure of Helios, the Greek sun god and patron of Rhodes. Even enormous ships looked tiny in comparison to the size of this sculpture.
The Colossus was constructed after the people of Rhodes defeated a large force of invading Macedonians in 305 Bc. To thank their patron god Helios, they commissioned the Greek sculptor Chares of Lindos to design a statue of Helios.
(3) There was no paucity of suitable metal with which to work. (4) Chares found an appreciable amount of bronze in the abandoned Macedonian weapons and armor, which he melted down and used for his masterpiece.
After twelve years of work, Chares completed the Colossus in 280 BC. According to many reports, he originally wanted the statue to straddle the harbori so that ships would sail under its legs. (5) However, the statue was so inordinately tall that it could not be balanced properly. Instead, Chares had to use large stone blocks for a base. (6) When he found out that even the breadth of this base could not support the height of the statue, he used seven and a half tons of iron to fill the hollow figure.
The Colossus of Rhodes stood in the harbor for only 56 years. In 224 BC, a series of earthquakes destroyed it. (7) Although the first earthquake caused only negligible damage, succeeding earthquakes toppled the monument at its weakest point: the knees. Finally, the earthquakes leveled the whole statue.
The ruins lay in the harbor for centuries. (8) Even in its fallen state, the gargantuan bronze statue was impressive. Then, in AD 653, new invaders defeated the island. (9) Hoping to gain value from the copious amounts of bronze in the statue, they had the remains broken up and carried away. (10) They sold the metal for a pittance, especially considering what the great statue had once been worth. More than nine hundred camels were needed to carry away pieces of the statue.
Though gone, the Colossus remained an inspiration to others, such as French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi. He designed the Statue of Liberty, sometimes referred to as the "Modern Colossus," to be the same size as the ancient wonder.
Indicate whether the statements below are TRUE or FALSE according to the passage.
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