National Geographic Ancient Megastructures Collection (All Episodes)
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Genre: Documentary
1. Angkor Wat
Hidden deep in Cambodia's jungles, the temple of Angkor Wat is a towering monument to the Hindu god Vishnu, belying its origins as the mausoleum for a usurper king who murdered his great uncle.
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2. Chartes Cathedral
This is the dramatic story behind the building of the grand, gothic Chartres Cathedral 80 kilometres from Paris. How it arose like a beacon from the ashes of the older church, the scale of its ambition posing seemingly impossible engineering challenges. The medieval solutions pushed the latest construction techniques to the limit. The result would change the buildings of the world - forever. But behind this triumph of engineering lies a dark story of violence, political double-dealing and destruction.
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3. Istanbul's Hagia Sophia
When fiery Roman Emperor Justinian ordered the rebuilding of the great church of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, he was bidding for nothing less than eternal glory, both for God and for himself. Exactly how the Romans conjured up the vast golden dome floating high above the ground has astounded architects for centuries. Modern science has only recently revealed the secret that allowed this colossal structure to survive almost 1500 years of turbulent history and earthquakes. Peel back the layers of this ancient megastructure to reveal its incredible engineering secrets, and the astonishing story of its construction.
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4. Machu Picchu
Built using techniques that surpass modern ones, the temples, altars and residences of Machu Picchu have resisted torrential rains, landslides and earth tremors since being abandoned by the Incas.
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5. Petra
Stuck between a rock and a hard place in the unforgiving deserts of Petra in modern day Jordan, the Nabataean dream of a glorious royal city must have seemed like little more than a very grand mirage. Standing at the crossroads of the ancient Near East, these wealthy traders would rely on human resourcefulness and courageous endeavour to turn engineering on its head and create one of the world’s most awe-inspiring monuments, the Khazneh. Uncover how the Nabataeans held back flash-floods to protect their greatest monument, and how clues hidden deep in the building reveal the great king whose vision created this masterpiece.
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6. St. Paul's Cathedral
From the ashes of London's Great Fire in 1666 rises Christopher Wren's daring architectural vision. As England's first Baroque cathedral, St Paul's is an icon to rival the grandeur of ancient Rome.
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7. The Alhambra
The Alhambra is the greatest example of Islamic military architecture in Europe. In 1238, the Moorish Sultan Muhammad I withdrew to Granada, in southern Spain, to create a bastion that would protect his family against Christian attack. It was here, against the backdrop of war and terror that Muhammad began a construction process that would span more than one and a half centuries and create one of the most beautiful palaces in the world. But just how did he construct such an impregnable fortress? How did he raise water from the river 100 metres below, to irrigate its gardens? And why is Greek geometry a crucial part of this Muslim masterpiece? See how ingenious engineering solutions and treacherous political betrayals gave birth to what is arguably the most perfect example of Moorish architecture in existence.
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8. The Colosseum
The Colosseum in ancient Rome staged the blockbuster entertainment of its day, where superstar gladiators would fight to the death in the ultimate showdowns. A gigantic oval 615 ft long, 510 ft wide and over 157 ft high, the Colosseum pushed Roman technology to its absolute limits. Its state-of-the art features are still only found in the most advanced superdomes today. Commissioned in AD 69 by the Emperor Vespasian, it was built next to a huge golden statue of Nero known as the Colossus - hence its nickname: the Colosseum. It is a symphony of arches - 240 grand stone arches grace its exterior alone. To achieve the massive heights required, the Romans invented the red brick, and bound these together with another Roman invention - concrete. The grand opening included a set of inaugural games that lasted 100 days and perhaps even a naval combat in the arena. After this, the games got ever more ambitious, and to facilitate them, Vespasian's younger son Domitian constructed the most amazing part of the Colosseum - the hypogeum. This underground labyrinth with 30 elevators and 60 trapdoors opening up into the arena above, from which gladiators, wild beasts and even collapsible scenery could pop up, helped turn the Colosseum into the iconic monument it is today, and form the blueprint for sports arenas for centuries to come.
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9. The Great Pyramid
The Great Pyramid of Giza is four-and-half thousand years old. It's the only ancient Wonder of the World still standing. It was conceived as a resurrection machine for the enigmatic pharaoh Khufu in 2551 BC and completed over 20 years later, just before his death. To cut and move the 2 million stones needed to build it would involve the organisation of the whole Egyptian state.
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hassaanid2009 / 07.10.2009
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