Places that once resounded in history but now disappeared

There are places that were extremely glorious in the past, they are extremely busy religious, economic, and political centers, and there are even places that have reached the pinnacle of human architecture.

However, through the upheavals of history, they were gradually forgotten and buried by time. Now people can only find remnants that prove these places once existed.

Sanchi, India

Sanchi is a beautiful small village located in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is famous for about 50 monuments along with 3 stupas, many Buddhist monasteries dating back a long time.

In which, the most famous is the Great Stupa of Sanchi, one of the important Buddhist monuments and also the largest remaining Buddhist stupa in India, reflecting the unique architectural art. This is also rated as one of the structures The most sophisticated in the world.

These huge stupas are semicircular structures with a small central chamber containing the relics of the Buddha.

The Great Stupa of Sanchi was built to represent the life and journey of the Buddha, from his birth to his nirvana. Besides, Sanchi is the place where Buddhist art and architecture undergoes the process of rise, development and death.

Machu Picchu, Peru

The ruins of Machu Picchu may be one of the most mysterious ancient ruins in the world.

It is often called the “lost city of the Incas” and was only discovered in 1911 by American archaeologist Hiram Bingham. It is located on a ridge in the Urubamba valley in Peru.

It was built in the classical Inca style and is surrounded by many natural hot springs, rice terraces, many temples, warehouses and other beautiful structures.

The Incas began to build this city around 1400 under the orders of the emperor to Pachacuti.

The works here are so strange and delicate that scientists even suspect that Machu Picchu was actually built by aliens because at that time, Inca technology could not build these structures. such architecture.

Great Zimbabwe, Africa

Great Zimbabwe was a major settlement in Iron Age Africa, built by indigenous Africans between 1250 and 1450 AD.

It is the largest of about 250 similarly dated non-mortar stone structures in Africa.

During its heyday, Greater Zimbabwe covered an area of ​​between 60,000 and 90,000 square kilometers and an estimated 18,000 inhabitants.

In the Shona language, “Zimbabwe” means “houses of stone” or “revered houses”.

This place was built with massive stone walls, up to a few meters thick, works built of monolithic stone, conical towers decorated with typical patterns and textures, … is a surviving example. It shows the amazing architecture and construction technology of the ancient Africans.

Palmyra, Syria

Palmyra is an ancient city of Syria, where there are many unique architectural works left over from ancient times. Palmyra is also mentioned in the bible.

Palmyra belonged to many different dynasties and cultures before becoming part of the Roman Empire in the 1st century AD.

The city was once extremely prosperous and wealthy, a center of agricultural production, commerce, pastoralism, and a stopover for merchants traveling along the Silk Road.

The ruins that remain today show how glorious Palmyra’s past was. However, today this citadel has been greatly damaged by time and ravages of war.

Ancient city of Nimrud, Iraq

Nimrud is an ancient Assyrian city that served as the capital of the world’s first empire – the Assyrian Empire for over 150 years, until 717 BC.

Located about 35km south of the Iraqi city of Mosul, Nimrud covers an area of ​​about 3.5 km² and holds many ancient works of extremely valuable value to mankind.

Typical works here can be mentioned as the giant palaces of the Assyrian kings, the ancient tomb of the Assyrian queen, the temple of war god Ninurta or the temple of the writing god Nabu, etc.

Countless precious treasures have been discovered, including crowns, gold jewelry, ivory bowls, etc. The ancient Assyrian architectural art here is also considered to have no competition. .

Tanis, Egypt

Tanis, also known as Djanet, was one of the richest trading centers that ever existed in ancient Egypt, it was also the capital of several Egyptian dynasties.

The city is one of the closest ports to Asian seaports. It is located in the Nile Delta, northeast of Cairo, eventually disappearing under an alluvial plain when the flow of the Nile is altered.

Although it is not as famous as other historical sites of Egypt, it is one of the largest archaeological sites ever found. The royal tombs at Tanis contain artifacts that are judged to be comparable to the treasures of King Tutankhamun.

Pompeii, Italy

The ancient city of Pompeii is located in western Italy, near the Bay of Naples. According to the surviving records, 10 great tribes together built the city of Pompeii.

This place is famous as a place for entertainment and enjoyment of the aristocracy and merchants with luxurious taverns. Archaeological remains show that at that time Pompeii had more than 100 taverns while the city had only about 20,000 inhabitants.

However, this flashy city was completely destroyed in an eruption of the volcano Vesuvius in 79, leaving more than 5,000 people and the entire structure buried under a layer of hot lava up to 20m thick.

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

The history of Angkor can be traced back to the 9th century, which witnessed the prosperity and glory of the Khmer empire. Angkor Wat is the largest religious monument in the world with an area of ​​162.6 hectares with thousands of large and small temples.

It was originally built as a Hindu temple of the Khmer Empire, but then gradually converted into a Buddhist temple at the end of the 12th century.

It houses some of the most splendid architectural and religious masterpieces in Southeast Asia, including more than 1200 steles and numerous towers, large and small, with intricate reliefs.

City of Petra, Jordan

The ancient city of Petra located on the slopes of Mount Hor in Jordan is famous for its unique architectural works carved directly into the mountain. It was known as the ancient Rekem and was the capital of the Nabatean Kingdom of Nabatea.

No one knows when Petra was formed, only that it has existed for a long time and holds a prime position on the trade route connecting West Asia and ancient Egypt.

The city’s heyday was about 2000 years ago, with an estimated population of 20,000. This place has massive architectural works such as theaters, tombs, temples, etc. The Romans have annexed this land and continue to bring Petra to flourish.

However, between the 4th and 7th centuries, Petra was devastated by a series of strong earthquakes. The city was abandoned and gradually fell into oblivion.

Ephesus, Turkey

Ephesus in Turkey is considered as an excellent museum that holds many cultural values ​​of mankind. This place was once the center of the Mediterranean, built by the Romans about 3000 years ago.

This is also where the temple of the hunting goddess Artemis – one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, even the first temple dedicated to the Virgin Mary is located in Ephesus.

Experiencing the ups and downs of history, the decline of maritime trade and political upheavals, the city was gradually destroyed and forgotten over time.

This city had been dormant for about 1500 years until it was discovered by archaeologists in 1860.

Today, with less than 20% of the area excavated, Ephesus remains one of the most sought-after archaeological sites in the world.

According to Traffic