Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

In present day Bodrum there once stood a tomb that was considered to be such an aesthetic triumph that it was included on the coveted list of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In fact, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus was untouched when the city fell to Alexander the Great, was undamaged by multiple pirate attacks, and stood above the city’s ruins for sixteen centuries. Bar the Pyramids of Giza still standing today, it was the last of the Seven Wonders to survive, until it was destroyed by successive earthquakes from the 12th-15th centuries.

In the 4th century BCE, Halicarnassus was the capital of the small regional kingdom of Caria. Governor Mausolus married his sister Artemisia, and together they ruled over the surrounding territory for 24 years. The couple spent huge amounts of tax money embellishing the city and building their elaborate tomb. When they died within two years of each other, their ashes were placed in the as yet unfinished tomb, and their siblings continued the project.

The finished structure resembled a temple, and at 45 metres tall it dominated the view above the harbour in Bodrum. Four Greek sculptors were responsible for designing one side each of the building. But it is unique in that is was adored with statues of people and animals, rather than the gods of Ancient Greece. The Tomb of Mausolus became so famous that the word mausoleum is now the generic word for an above-ground tomb.

Today there is not much left to see of the mausoleum, aside from its foundations. Many of the stones from the ruins of the tomb were used to fortify the castle at Bodrum. Much of the marble was burned into lime for plaster. Any treasure that was inside has been plundered long ago. Several of the statues from the tomb now reside in the British Museum. And some of the marble blocks from the site were even used to construct a new dock in Malta for the Royal Navy.

But despite all of this, it was still a special occasion to visit the site of such an iconic piece of architecture that holds such significance in the history of the area.