Seven Indian Monuments that can Claim a Position in World's Seven Wonders

A country’s monument making up to the list of ‘Seven wonders of the World’ is certainly a pride to that nation. India is the land of culture, heritage, ethics, and more from which the world-renowned has acquired a position in Seven Wonders of the World. However, India has many such monuments that have the potential to reach the list of seven wonders. India’s diversity has paved the way for the country to create such iconic and engrossing monuments across the nation. These monuments are not just the Indian tourism center but possess the status of the World Heritage Sites. Let us glance through seven such Indian monuments that can make it up to the Seven Wonders of the World.

Statue of Unity

The statue of unity is the world’s tallest statue that has been dedicated to the ‘Iron Man of India’, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, country’s First Deputy Prime Minister and one of the founding fathers. With this statue, India has ventured into the club of the countries installed the tallest statue in the world. The Statue has been installed on the Sandhu Bet Island on the Sardar Sarovar Dam downstream which is about 100 kilometers southeast of Vadodara.

The statue stands 182 meters tall, it was unveiled by our honorable Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the occasion of Sardar Patel’s 143rd birth anniversary, on 31 October 2018. The project of constructing the humongous statue was tendered over to Larsen & Turbo for a whopping amount of 2,989 crore. The construction commenced on October 31st, 2014. The main purpose behind constructing this statue is to honor Sardar Patel who played a vital role in unifying the princely states to make it a consolidated Indian republic. Also, his efforts in relieving the refugees leaving Delhi and Punjab and integrated the British colonial provinces that were allocated to India.

Charminar

Charminar is claimed to be the first building in Hyderabad and over a period of time, it evolved to be an iconic symbol of the city’s heritage. The monument is renowned for its grand architectural composition. The building measures about 20 meters to a side and 36 feet of cardinal directions wide at the base and reaches 66 feet high at its apex. The structure features two stories where one is used as a madrasah (Islamic college) while the second house is used as a mosque it also has more than 45 payer areas apart from the mosque.

Charminar was constructed in 1591 A.D under the rule of Muhammad Quli Qutb Shahi to celebrate the culmination of a deadly plague. It is been told that Muhammad Quli Qutb Shahi had prayed for the deadly disease to end and vowed to build a mosque on the plague’s eradication. Charminar refers to Char and Minar which means four towers.

Khajuraho Temples

These sculptured temples were built by the Chandella rulers between 900 and 1130 A.D which is said to be the golden period of the Chandela dynasty. It is been said that most of the Chandella ruler has built at least one temple in their lifetime. Maharaja Rao Vidyadhara who had a unique love for sculptures has constructed these temples and his interest in sculptures is reflected in these temples of Khajuraho and Kalinjar fort. These temples are located in the heart of central India in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The first recorded mention of the Khajuraho temples is in the accounts of Al-Biruni AD 1022 and in the works of the Arab traveler Ibn Battuta in 1335 AD.

Qutub Minar 

The 800 years old building is located in the Mehrauli area in Delhi. It is the tallest brick-built minar in the early medieval period. The structure has been constructed in 1199 by Qutub-ud-din Aibak to remark his kingship. This is one of the early surviving mosques in northern India. It consists of five imposing floors, the entire Minar is in red and cream sandstone that embellished with beautiful Thuluth calligraphy that reads verses from the Quran. The Qutub Minar stands 72.5 meters high (237.8 ft) with 399 steps leading to the top. Although formerly closed, visitors may climb to the top of the tower for a fee of 500. The diameter of the base measures 14.3 meters wide, while the top floor spans 2.75 meters in diameter. Many Indian artwork from the late twelfth century C.E. are found surrounding the structure

Monolithic Gomateshware Statue

This statue has been dedicated to Lord Bahubali, a Jain saint. It is located at the hilltop in Shravanabelagola and this 60 feet tall statue has been carved out of a single block of granite. The statue is so tall that it is visible even from 30 kilometers away. It is said that this statue has been constructed by a poet and minister from the Wester Ganga dynasty, Chamundaraya, between the years 978 and 993 CE. Every 12 years the devotees gather at this pilgrimage climbing 614 steps to celebrate the Mahamastakabhisheka festival during which the statue cleansed with 1,008 pots of water followed by milk, sugarcane juice, and paste made from the saffron flower. 

Ajanta Ellora Caves

Ajanta Ellora caves are located in the Sahyadri hills in Aurangabad and it has been constructed from 600 to 1000 CE. The caves comprise of Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain temples and have more than 100 caves out of which only 34 are open for public viewing. There are about 17 Hindu caves, 12 Buddhist caves, and five Jain caves with deities, carving, and even monasteries of the respective religion. This craving symbolizes harmony, and solidarity among all faiths and beliefs.

The three major construction periods for the Ellora caves fall on the early Hindu period from 550 to 600 CE, the Buddhist period from 600 to 730 CE, and the last phase of the Jain and Hindu period from 730 to 950 CE.

Gol Gumbaz

Gol Gumbaz was built in the 16th century by Adil Shah the seventh ruler of the Adil Shahi Dynasty. He had ordered to wrap up the tomb’s construction before his death. Adil initiated this construction right after his succession of the Bijapur Sultanate throne and the construction took him almost 20 years as the tomb has four minar, and each has seven floors with staircases. This structure enables one to see an overall view of Bijapur from these minars. This is said to be the second-largest in the world right after St.Peter’Basilica in Rome. The surprising thing is that the tomb has been constructed without any pillar support. 

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