New Seven Wonders of the World

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For the list by USA Today/Good Morning America, see Seven Wonders of the World#New Seven Wonders. For other uses see Wonders of the World (disambiguation)

The New Seven Wonders of the World is a proposed revision of the Seven Wonders of the World, organized by a Swiss-based, for-profit corporation called New Open World Corporation (NOWC). The selection is being made by free and paid votes, through telephone or online. The first vote is free to registered members and additional votes may be purchased through a donation to NOWC. In addition to the sale of votes, NOWC relies on private donations, the sale of merchandise such as shirts and cups, and revenue from selling broadcasting rights.[1]

Contents

[edit] History

According to the NOWC milestones page[2], Swiss businessman Bernard Weber launched the project in September 1999. By November 24, 2005, 177 monuments were up for consideration. To be included on the new list, the wonders had to be man-made, completed before 2000, and in an "acceptable" state of preservation. On January 1, 2006, the NOWC said the list had been narrowed to 21 sites [3] which are currently into a voting phase[4].

In addition to free votes, votes can be bought from NOWC by any individual, organization or government. As explained in its Terms and Conditions, NOWC "reserves the right at its absolute discretion to exclude [any] votes" that are cast.[5]

The final list is planned to be announced on July 7, 2007, or 07.07.07, in Lisbon.

NOWC is not connected with UNESCO. Federico Mayor who was a former UNESCO Director General, is associated with the project, but only as an individual.

[edit] New Seven Wonders contenders

The 21 finalists[6], listed alphabetically, are:

Wonder Location Image
Acropolis of Athens Athens, Greece The Acropolis of Athens, seen from the hill of the Pnyx to the west
Alhambra Granada, Spain View of the Alhambra from the Mirador St Nicolas in the Albaycin of Granada
Angkor Wat Angkor, Cambodia The main entrance to the temple proper, seen from the eastern end of the Naga causeway
Chichen Itza Yucatan, Mexico El Castillo being climbed by tourists
Christ the Redeemer Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro
Colosseum Rome, Italy The Colosseum by night: exterior view of the best-preserved section
Easter Island Moais Easter Island, Chile Rano Raraku Moai
Eiffel Tower Paris, France Tour eiffel at sunrise from the trocadero
Great Wall China The Great Wall in the winter
Hagia Sophia Istanbul, Turkey Hagia Sophia
Kiyomizu Temple Kyoto, Japan Kiyomizu-dera
Kremlin and Red Square Moscow, Russia The Moscow Kremlin, as seen from the Balchug
Saint Basil's Cathedral and Spasskaya Tower of Moscow Kremlin at Red Square in Moscow
Machu Picchu Cuzco, Perú View of Machu Picchu
Neuschwanstein Castle Füssen, Germany Neuschwanstein seen from the Marienbrücke
Petra Jordan The Treasury at Petra
Pyramids of Giza Egypt Pyramide Kheops
Statue of Liberty New York City, United States Statue of Liberty and Liberty Island
Stonehenge Amesbury, United Kingdom Stonehenge in 2004
Sydney Opera House Sydney, Australia Internationally, the Sydney Opera House is the most recognised symbol of Sydney
Taj Mahal Agra, India Taj Mahal
Timbuktu Mali Sankore Mosque in Timbuktu

[edit] Criticism

Among those critical of the effort are some in Egypt who see it as competition to the status of the Great Pyramid of Giza, the only surviving monument of the original Ancient Wonders. "This is probably a conspiracy against Egypt, its civilization and monuments," wrote editorialist Al-Sayed al-Naggar in a leading state-owned daily.[7] Egyptian Culture Minister Farouq Hosni said the project was "absurd" and described its creator, Weber, as a man "concerned primarily with self-promotion".[7] Nagib Amin, an Egyptian expert on World Heritage Sites, has pointed out that "in addition to the commercial aspect, the vote has no scientific basis."[7]

[edit] References

  1. ^ [1]
  2. ^ NOWC Milestone page
  3. ^ BBC News Article 2 Jan 2006
  4. ^ Voting page
  5. ^ NOWC Terms and Conditions
  6. ^ Finalist Page
  7. ^ a b c "Egypt fumes over fresh seven wonders competition for pyramids" AFP, article retrieved Jan. 25, 2007

[edit] External links

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