The world we live in consists of impressive structures that are both man-made and natural. The man-made structures include churches, temples, statues, and many more. From all those creations in the world, 7 wonderful creations are listed as the seven wonders of the world and they have left people awestruck with their brilliance.
Among the seven wonders of the world, one of the brilliant structures done by man is the Great Wall of China. With attracting thousands of visitors the Great Wall stretches across Northern China. And along with a rich history, the wall had been constructed over 2000 years before.
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So scroll down to know some interesting facts about this iconic monument.
Fact 1: The longest man-made structure
With a length of 13,171 miles, it holds the place of the world’s longest man-made structure. And it seems that it would hold its place the same because the second-longest is the Great Wall of Gorgan in Iran with a length less than 125 miles.
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Fact 2: It’s not a continuous wall
When we hear the name Great Wall of China we all think that it’s one continuous wall. But in reality, it is not, it’s a system of walls and many are parallel to each other. And all of them are not walls, natural things like hills and rivers are also considered as a part of this.
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Fact 3: What we see today is relatively new
In the 7th century BCE, the building process of the walls has started in different regions and in the 3rd century BCE Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor in China had started to unify these walls. About half of the wall had been built by the Ming Dynasty.
The well-preserved areas of the Great Wall Badaling, Mutianyu, and Jinshanling are near Beijing and they attract a number of tourists every year. These areas are being preserved for the people who visit and Badaling is the location for official state visits.
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Fact 4: Convicts had worked on the wall
During the construction of the wall more than 1,000,000 people had worked on it. And among them had been convicts who had committed crimes ranging from tax evasion to murders. They had been responsible to keep a look at the wall day and night. Also, the civilians had given a big hand to construct the Great Wall of China.
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Fact 5: A slow disappearance of the wall
We all know how long the wall is and it moves across 15 regions. Therefore to maintain it is not an easy task. It is stated that some parts are already disappeared. With no repair and being left out the walls have been disappeared. It was stated in 2014 that 10% of it is in good condition and 74% is in bad condition.
And apart from that, even the humans had a hand in the damages done to the wall. Some areas were ruined for land development. Also, there’s a black market for the bricks of the Great Wall and also even tourists steal bricks.
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Fact 6: Rice is used to build the wall
Something we all know is that rice is sticky and the builders shave used rice during the construction to build stable walls. They have added rice to the motor hoping that it would be strangers. Also, it’s said that one of the reasons for the wall to last long is the amylopectin present in the rice.
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Fact 7: It’s not visible to space
One of the rumors that we have heard is that the Great Wall of China is visible to space. But as NASA had stated it cannot be seen from the space above. According to them, it’s not visible to astronaut photography. And the reason is that the materials used to build the Great Wall of China has the same colors and texture as the surrounding.
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Fact 8: Stories and legends inspired by the wall
Just like in every monument even the Great Wall has inspired and given birth to different stories. And one such story is Meng Jiangnu’s Bitter Weeping. In the story, Jiangnu’s husband has died working in the construction of the wall. And she had wept for her husband and a part of the wall had fallen and she was able to find her husband’s bone and give him a proper burial.
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Fact 9: Still some sections of the wall is being discovered
You might be surprised to hear that still there are some parts of the wall being discovered. In 2009 a section of the Ming Dynasty wall had been discovered and it was covered by rivers hills and trenches. Also in 2015, they had been able to discover some wall ruins in areas where they had thought there would be no ruins. It is believed that the walls were made during the Qin dynasty and due to natural reasons, the height of the walls had been reduced.
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Fact 10: One of the new 7 wonders of the world
As mentioned previously the Great Wall of China is a part of the new seven wonders of the world. In 2007 it was included in the list started by the New 7 Wonders Foundation.
Do leave a comment below sharing what you think about this iconic man-made monument.
I have been into reading, creative writing, learning different languages from my young age. Also, I’m really fond of calligraphy which I have participated in competitions and won. I was an athlete while I was schooling and I have excelled in the events I did. I have passed my O/levels and did my A/levels in the Physical science stream. Even though my passion for reading and writing never ended. Keep Reading! Keep Learning!
