Mausoleum of Maussollos at Halicarnassus

Attribution: 

Wonders_

Key Dates

The tomb was built between 353 and 350 BC. It stood above Halicarnassus’ ruins for sixteen centuries. It was untouched when the city fell to Alexander III of Macedon in 334 BC, and withstood attacks by pirates in 62 and 58 BC. Then a series of earthquakes shattered the columns and sent the bronze chariot crashing to the ground. By 1404 AD only the very base of the Mausoleum was still recognisable. Today only the foundations remain at the site of the Mausoleum itself.
 

Key People

It was built for Mausolus, ruler of Caria (377–353 BC), and Artemisia II of Caria (d. 350 BC) his wife and sister. It was designed by the Greek architects Satyros and Pythis. In 1852 the British Museum sent the archaeologist Charles Thomas Newton to search for remains of the Mausoleum. From 1966 to 1977, the Mausoleum’s remains were thoroughly researched by Prof. Kristian Jeppesen of Aarhus University, Denmark.

  The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus was built between 353 and 350 BC at Halicarnassus (present Bodrum, Turkey), initially as a spectacular tomb for Mausolus at the behest of the broken-hearted Artemisia (incestuous marriages were the custom in Caria for rulers), who was herself laid to rest there only two years later. It stood approximately 45 meters in height. Each of the four sides were adorned with sculptural reliefs created by each one of four Greek sculptors — Leiochares, Bryaxis, Scopas of Paros and Timotheus.

The finished structure was considered so grand that Antipater of Sidon identified it as one of his Seven Wonders of the World. The word ‘mausoleum’ has since become a generic name for any grand tomb.

Today, the massive castle of the Knights of Malta stands in Bodrum, featuring polished stone and marble blocks of the original Mausoleum built into its walls. Some of its surviving sculptures can be seen at the British Museum in London.

Admission Fee

Admission Free

Images

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