interesting info about the Colossus

[Ray K]

picked this up from a book on the Seven Wonders. This is just FYI for those Civers that are interested in historical stuff like this.

1. The Colossus was made to celebrate a military victory and stood 120' tall.
2. It took 12 years to build (it takes me over a 1000 years in Civ3!)
3. It was made in the image of the sun-god Helios, who typically was presented with "sunbeams" on his head.
4. The frame was made of iron, since bronze was not strong enough to support something this size (the Civ3 prereq is Bronze Working)
5. No one knows the exact pose of the Colossus, but it was not large enough to straddle the port. It stood on one side.
6. The Statue of Liberty was modeled after the Colossus, which explains the points on her head (the sunbeams).
7. The Colossus stood for less than a century before it was felled by an earthquake. No descriptions of it before the earthquake remain.
8. When Arabs took over Rhodes, the fallen Colossus was stripped of its bronze plating. It supposedly took 900 camels to carry it away.
9. In the 1500's, there was a revival in Rome around the ancient Wonders. Many thought that the huge statue outside the Roman amphitheatre was actually the Colossus of Rhodes, transported to Rome by the ancient empire. As a result, they renamed their amphitheatre to the "Colosseum" and the name has stuck ever since.

Interesting info on the 7 wonders can be found at http://people.ne.mediaone.net/ruthe/...ient%20Art.htm

[EEKthedog]

It took them 12 years because they used a great leader, d'uh

[quinalla]

Thanks for the tidbit, it is nice to learn something about history every once in awhile

-quinalla

[ThaddeusAlexander]

Just a quick tag, Rhodes was the city of unity and commerce, a city free of prejudice and the most multicultural city in the ancient med. sea (or so it is written), which is why the french recycled the idea when they constructed the statue of liberty.

As a bit of off topic, i'm always amazed at how much americans as a whole hate the french. it doesn't make sense to me. if it wasn't for the cash and all the weapons the french gave the US, they would have never been able to defeat the english and gain independance ... they had no weapons in the beginning - they were all smuggled from france!

And then, france gives the US this great landmark statue - the statue of liberty which pointed to france and welcomed ships to the land of freedom. the american symbol is french, we all know, so why does america dislike the french so much?

I never understood that ... maybe i'm not suppose to

Cheers
~Alex

[HugoHillbilly]

Its because they are jelous :P

its curious they are great allies with the british now as well

[ThaddeusAlexander]

Originally posted by HugoHillbilly
Its because they are jelous :P

its curious they are great allies with the british now as well

Not really ... they need SAS help in afghanistan ... heck even us canadian have a better anti-terrorist unit than the US (although the british beat us out .. duh!)

But yeah - jealous is the right word

~Alex
(ps, where in ontario u from? i'm in toronto .. PM/E-mail me)

[Falconius]

Originally posted by ThaddeusAlexander
As a bit of off topic, i'm always amazed at how much americans as a whole hate the french. it doesn't make sense to me

Au contraire, mon frere! I'm American and I love the French. What gives you the impression they are disliked here?

[OzzyKP]

Originally posted by ThaddeusAlexander

As a bit of off topic, i'm always amazed at how much americans as a whole hate the french. it doesn't make sense to me. if it wasn't for the cash and all the weapons the french gave the US, they would have never been able to defeat the english and gain independance ... they had no weapons in the beginning - they were all smuggled from france!

And then, france gives the US this great landmark statue - the statue of liberty which pointed to france and welcomed ships to the land of freedom. the american symbol is french, we all know, so why does america dislike the french so much?

I never understood that ... maybe i'm not suppose to

Cheers
~Alex

My Impression was it was the other way around, that the French hated Americans.

[Sabre2th]

I've never heard of any significant group of people that's really hated the French. Where did you get that idea?

[UnforgiveMe2000]

The True American symbol

Sorry i just have to open my mouth.

But Statue of Liberty in my eyes is not the american symbol. To me to be a symbol of a country it need something that has withstood from the start of that civilization. Statue of liberty is a symbol not of america but of a FREE world, A symbol of what the United states offers for every legal immigrant that enters this country, the right of equal oppurtunities.

As for the american symbol is and always will be the Flag? no one can argue the importance our flag have withstood for almost the last 230 years. The statue of liberty was only built in the very late 1800's. I'm not arguing it's not symbolic but not of america but freedom and oppurtunity.

As for hating french, i don't and for the most part most people don't. I don't know anyone who does, well that's my 2 cents

[wervdon]

I doubt the average american could tell you that French Revolution occured, that french is spoken throughout the world, or really anything about France or its history other than its in Europe and the capital is Paris. Thats probally a bit of exageration, but not by alot ;P

Do we hate the french? Hmmm, well some of our entertainment suggests we do, but really you can't go by comedy :P I know, speaking for just one american, myself, I don't hate the french. I wouldn't want to live in France though due to all the socialism, but thats just a political preference of mine, and not hate for the people. On the contrary, French history is more exciting than British or American History. One thing I've never really understood about them though is how they went from Napolean to the seemingly pacifists they are now by and large? (Im talking their stances on the death penalty and about the current situation with attacking countries over terrorists) I guess my history between 1810 and 1940 is weak or id probally be able to answer that :P

In any case, I dont think its fair to say we hate them, or we are jealous of them. I doubt most of us really even know who they are, and are just subject to misconceptions and assumptions (myself included most likely)

[Ray K]

Re: The True American symbol

Originally posted by UnforgiveMe2000
Sorry i just have to open my mouth.

But Statue of Liberty in my eyes is not the american symbol. To me to be a symbol of a country it need something that has withstood from the start of that civilization. Statue of liberty is a symbol not of america but of a FREE world, A symbol of what the United states offers for every legal immigrant that enters this country, the right of equal oppurtunities.

Well, the Statue of Liberty is a symbol of the Enlightenment, a period of time when the notions of individual liberty and secular government became dominant forces in Western culture. Its roots run deep, through Renaissance all the way back to the rationalism of Ancient Greece. When the Statue was built, the Enlightenment was in full swing, dominating the thinking of Western leaders. Having the Statue of Liberty and the Lincoln Memorial patterned after two of the Ancient Wonders of the World, both Greek, was no coincidence.

So, I agree with you. The Statue of Liberty is not a symbol for just America, even moreso today. It is an international symbol representing the highest ideals of Western civilization.

Most Americans today probably think of it simply as a tourist attraction and the shock ending for "The Planet of the Apes".

It's probably the #1 Wonder of our age. We would all do well to see it before some psycho tries to blow it up next.

[Frito]

Well I hate the french. They always ignore my borders, demand tribute, will never trade me oil, and on top of that there pink!!!

Oh, you mean the real world...oh..uhh...humm...I really like france(europe at that) and I don't know any other american that hates french people either. I really would like to know why some people think Americans hate all these other people.

BTW I was in Paris a few years ago and the pople I meet there will very nice so I doubt the French hate Americans, just like the Americans don't hate the French.

[Rathgar1]

I Love the french!

Everday I eat French Fries, and I really like French Toast!

[Dis]

because the french hate americans.

they burn down our culture inspiring McDonalds. Surely this is the greatest symbol of America. All hail the golden arches.