Ancient Civilizations

All over the world you can find ancient cities. Its ruins still make a huge impression. Once they were the capitals of entire States and even ancient civilizations, but they were destroyed, some of them were forgotten and found centuries later.

Over the past 5 thousand years, several ancient civilizations were born, experienced their heyday and then died. In Europe and the middle East, we are talking about Egypt, Israel, Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome. All of them had their influence on our civilization, and the greatest influence was exerted by the greatest of empires - the Roman one.

In this review on the online guide you can read about the places where the ruins of ancient civilizations are located:

1. Angkor Wat Temple, Cambodia
2. Pyramids in Giza, Egypt
3. Temples of Luxor, Egypt
4. Temples in Ayutthaya, Thailand
5. Nabataean city of Petra, Jordan
6. Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Israel
7. The Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, Israel
8. Roman Forum, Italy
9. Ruins of Pompei, Italy

Click on the hyperlinks to read in detail about each attraction and see a large number of photos

Angkor Wat Temple, Cambodia

Angkor Wat is the world's largest temple complex, but it cannot just be called a beautiful temple. This is a special place, with a special energy, where you can feel that any person or any civilization is nothing in the face of nature.

In Southeast Asia in ancient times there was a powerful Khmer state. During its heyday, its rulers built several huge temple complexes called Angkor Wat. Then the state ceased to exist, and the temples were forgotten for hundreds of years. They were completely absorbed in the jungle. In the 19th century they were found again. Some temples were cleared of jungles, and some were left with giant trees on the roofs.

Pyramids in Giza, Egypt

Piramids in Giza - it is the only World`s Wonder which has survived until our time. The rest of architectural masterpieces of the ancient world were either obliterated, or almost fully ruined. For many centuries pyramids have attracted not only common people but also scientists, which tried to solve the riddles and mysteries connected with these magnificent constructions. 

It is said that pyramids were constructed with the help of rather primitive tools, but then how could they get such precision. Pyramids are built on carefully measured foundations, with offsets not exceeding two centimeters.  Even more mysterious is the matter of cutting and drilling equipment, used for pyramids and other articles found in Giza. So far there are no devices which could cut and drill granite or basalt with such amazing precision.

Temples of Luxor, Egypt

Luxor is one of the most interesting cities in Egypt. Its touristic attraction is obvious. For many centuries, here was the capital of the ancient Egyptian Kingdom. The Greeks called it - city Thebes. In the Bible, this city is mentioned in the books of Jeremiah and Ezekiel under the name No.

Great monuments of antiquity are located on both banks of the Nile. On the Eastern Bank, where Luxor itself is located, there is the so-called "City of the Living". Here the main temples of Egypt, Karnak and Luxor, are located. 

On the West Bank is the City of the Dead. The tombs of pharaohs were carved into the Rocks in the Valley of the Kings. Nearby are located the Valley of Queens, Temples Hatshepsut (Deir El-Bahri), Medinet Abu, Ramesseum. The Colossi of Memnon are located near the road.

Temples in Ayutthaya, Thailand

Ayutthaya was founded in 1320, and for more than four centuries it had been the capital of the Kingdom of Thailand (then Siam). There are many testimonies of exceptional beauty of the city in the period of its growth. According to many contemporaries, it was the most wonderful city in South-East Asia. 

After the destruction of Ayutthaya in 1767, the capital of the Thai kingdom gradually became the city of Bangkok, which was formed near the destroyed Ayutthaya. There are 6 ancient Buddhist temples in Ayutthaya, as well as a Royal palace. In the Wat Maha That temple there was a sacred Buddha statue, which was destroyed in the 18th century by the Burmese. The monks managed to save only the head of that statue by throwing it into the roots of trees. For several centuries, the roots of the trees completely wrapped around the head of the Buddha.

Nabataean city of Petra, Jordan

The ruins of the ancient Nabataean city of Petra can be called one of the most interesting sights in the world. The territory of Petra is so huge that to visit it, you need to plan the whole daylight day, or preferably two days. At the entrance to Petra is the village of Wadi Musa, where there are many hotels.

At the entrance to Petra is the famous Sik Gorge. Its length is one and a half kilometers. At the exit of the Sik is the most famous and impressive landmark of Petra - the facade of the Treasury building. This is a huge building with a height of 42 meters. Turning to the right, tourists come out into a vast space where there are ruins of a large city and residential buildings, temples, an amphitheater and many other buildings.

Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Israel

The Temple Mount is considered as one of the most sacred for three world religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It is identified with Mount Moriah, where very important events took place described in the Bible and the Koran.

You can see the crest of Mount Moriah in the center of the Dome of the Rock (non-Muslims aren’t allowed to enter this mosque). It is said that Abraham had to sacrifice his only son Isaac there. At that mount Jacob slept hiding from the anger of Esau. It was just there that the king David brought the Arc of the Covenant, and Solomon had the First Temple built there. As it is narrated in the Koran, the prophet Mohammed was carried by the sacred steed Al-Buraq to the Heaven from this mount.

The Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, Israel

It is a part of the ancient wall left over from the Second Temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. It was the Western outer wall of the temple, and in Europe it is more often called the "Western wall" rather than the "Wailing Wall". The second temple in Jerusalem was built in 516 BC. However, the Western wall, which preserved till our day was built by King Herod in 37 BC.

Why is it so called – the Wailing Wall? It is related with rather difficult fate of the people of Israel. As is known, the Jews were divided into 12 tribes by the number of Jacob`s sons. After Babylonian Captivity only two tribes could return to Jerusalem, those of Judas and Benjamin. All the other tribes were dispersed in the world. 

Roman Forum, Italy

For several centuries the Roman Forum was the center of the Ancient Rome. It is in the valley between the Palatine, Capitoline and Esquiline hills. Most ancient structures now lay in ruins but some of them, which were built in 100-300 A.D., are in good condition.

At first the Roman Forum was only a trading area. But eventually it became the center of business, public, political and religious life of the vast Roman Empire. All public events took place just there. Since the time of the Roman Republic executions were also held on the Roman Forum.

Ruins of Pompeii, Italy

Time has not spared the cities of ancient civilizations. Almost all of them have come down to our days in the form of fragments of ruins, which give only a partial idea of how people lived several millennia ago. Roman city Pompeii is quite another matter. In 79 AD, Mount Vesuvius erupted here. This tragedy led to the death of the city, however, it allowed to actually preserve it in the form it was 2 thousand years ago.

Everything has been preserved in Pompeii, streets with all the infrastructure of wells and drains, houses in which you can literally import furniture and live. During the excavations, many valuable artifacts, various statues and other exhibits were found here. Most of them can be seen in the Neapolitan Museum. In addition to the life of the ancient Romans in Pompeii, of course, you can see what the religious and state buildings looked like.