Our world is home to an abundance of astounding historical places. Constructed by ancient civilizations, these wondrous masterpieces excite our imagination with their beauty and human ingenuity.
Petra, located in modern day Jordan, is an incredible carved city that was inhabited for centuries. With soaring pillars, walls and canyon settings – it stands as an amazing historical site and one of the world’s must-see historic spots.
1. Petra
Petra, known as “The Lost City” to ancient peoples, remains one of the world’s most breathtaking historical places. Uncoverd only accidentally by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812, Petra had lain dormant for centuries – until Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt accidentally discovered it once more in 1812.
The Nabataeans were nomadic people living on trade routes between Arabia, Egypt and India. Skilled traders knew how to take advantage of their environment by carving houses, tombs, temples and palaces into Petra’s soft sandstone cliffs for use as homes or monuments.
Petra is home to many spectacular structures, but none is more breathtaking than its Treasury, which was carved directly into its rock face. Other attractions include Roman amphitheater, obelisks, caves and temples such as Ad-Deir Monastery – making a visit worth your while! You will require at least several days in order to see everything there is to see at Petra.
2. Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu, situated in Peru’s Andes Mountains and dating back to 15th-century Inca rule, stands as an impressive mountaintop citadel filled with temples, shrines, residential areas, agricultural terraces and agricultural terraces – a UNESCO World Heritage site that showcases their architecture, engineering and construction skills as well as medicine and astronomy knowledge.
One hundred years later, at the start of Spanish colonial conquest of Incas, it was abandoned due to its remoteness and defensible position – ideal for mitimaes (Inca royalty) to gather and organize resistance against Spanish invaders. Being completely self-sufficient with food production facilities, textile workshops, servants and livestock for domestic service as well as being home to an army of warriors as well as farmers, craftspeople and architects trained there made this city self-sustaining for survival during times of invasion.
3. The Terracotta Army
In 1974, farmers digging wells in China’s Shaanxi Province made an astounding discovery: an underground mausoleum built for China’s first Emperor had been unearthed, featuring life-sized clay figures known as Terracotta Army statues. Estimating they may have been interred for over 2,200 years!
The First Emperor believed he needed his army with him into the afterlife, so he spent much time and resources building his tomb for this purpose.
Figures were said to be drawn based on local people, giving them more realism down to details such as facial features and weapons.
4. Ayutthaya
Siam (today known as Thailand) was one of Asia’s richest and most vibrant cities during the 17th century. Its kings welcomed Chinese, Indian, Persian and European traders and allowed them to settle outside the city limits. Furthermore, these same kings hired Japanese warriors and Western missionaries.
The kingdom was governed by formal codes of law based on ancient Indian bodies of jurisprudence, with village heads owning land titles while peasant proprietors could move villages as desired and cultivate alternative crops as desired.
Fra Mauro published his map of Ayuthaya in 1450, so its existence was known long before European colonizers arrived. Unfortunately, Ayuthaya was ultimately destroyed by Burmese forces in 1767.
5. Easter Island
Easter Island stands as a towering symbol of human creativity, yet few historical sites compare to this small spit of rock in one of Earth’s oceans, known for its nearly 1000 enormous stone statues. Their builders remain unknown; however, missionary stories, archaeologist’s shovels, and anthropologists’ boxes of bones have given some clues as to their society.
Most of Rapa Nui’s nearly 900 statues (known as moai) are made of light volcanic rock called tuff, making them easy to carve. They stand atop platforms called ahu meant to guard and protect villages; their exact purpose remains unknown; why they almost always face inward and why many have top knots made of scoria are among several mysteries we don’t yet fully comprehend; nonetheless what evidence exists suggests they operated an intricate yet short-lived Polynesian society that lived on Rapa Nui.
