Built: Early 200s B.C.

Location: Near harbor of Rhodes, a Greek island in Aegean Sea

History: The Greek sculptor Chares and his shop worked 12 years to build a giant bronze statue in honor of the sun god Helios. The statue, celebrating the unity of Rhodes' three city-states, is believed to have stood on a promontory overlooking the water.

At approximately 120 feet, the bronze Colossus stood almost as high as the Statue of Liberty in the United States. Interior stone blocks and iron bars supported the hollow statue. Just 56 years after it was built, a strong earthquake destroyed it.