You've never seen ancient engineering like this before.

This is Pont du Gard, in France, built 2,000 years ago — without any cement.

Here is a look into the breathtaking world of Roman aqueducts...🧵 1. Pont Du Gard, Gard, France (60 AD)

The most famous of all Roman aqueducts and rightly so — it's held up by the precise cutting in the stone and gravity alone.

All of this while carrying 44 million gallons of water, daily, to the city of Nîmes.

Look Up.

This is what a great ceiling looks like — it's St. Mary's Basilica in Kraków, Poland.

But that's just one breathtaking example, so here are 21 more... 🧵 1. Sainte-Chapelle, Paris, France (1248)

You've seen it a thousand times before.

It's the Acropolis of Athens, in Greece.

You already know about the Parthenon, but what about all the other buildings surrounding it?

Well, that's where it gets interesting... 🧵 The Acropolis you see today isn't what early, ancient Greece would have seen 2,500 year ago.

And it wasn't made by accident either; this was the result of a deliberate effort led by one man:

Pericles.

This may look like an ordinary temple but everything you see here was carved entirely by hand, 1,200 years ago.

Where? How? Why?

First, here's the twist: it's not unique — the ancient world was littered with wonders like this... 🧵 This is Kailasa Temple, in Maharasha, India.

And it may look like any ordinary ancient wonder, but this is the largest monolithic building in the world.

Meaning it was built in its entirety from just a single piece of rock...

Everybody knows about Gothic and Classical architecture. But what about Baroque?

From Italy to India, here are 18 masterpieces that prove it is much grander than you think... 🧵

1. Royal Palace of Caserta, Italy (1752) 2. Palace of Versailles, Versailles, France (1682)

Rome may not have been built in a day.

But its legacy began today, exactly 2,778 years ago.

Here are its greatest masterpieces... (thread) 🧵

1. The Pantheon (128AD) The Pantheon is, without a doubt, Rome's best preserved monument.

It is home to the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world — even today, after almost 2,000 years since it was built.

Were the Hanging Gardens of Babylon real or purely a myth?

Well, some evidence suggests that they weren't built in Babylon — but in a city 300 miles north of it.

Here's what we know about this 2,500 year old secret... 🧵 The story begins in 605 BC.

At this point in time, Babylon is the largest city in the world.

And some estimates even put it as the first city in history to reach 200,000 inhabitants.

It was built 125 years ago but feels straight out of the Renaissance.

This is the Liberty Bridge, in Budapest — a fine example of Art Nouveau.

And it's just one of the world's many breathtaking bridges. Here are 19 more... 🧵 1. Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic (1402)

It is said that egg yolks were mixed into the mortar to make it stronger — and centuries later, it's still standing.

It's impossible to picture Paris without the Eiffel Tower today.

But 136 years ago the story was different — it was meant to be a temporary masterpiece.

Here's how the world's most visited monument was (almost) intentionally demolished... 🧵 This was the first drawing of the Eiffel Tower by Maurice Koechlin from 1884.

(You can also see a size comparison with the Notre Dame de Paris, the Statue of Liberty and the Vendôme Column.)

This is the Meteora Monasteries, a revolutionary wonder of Greece, built 600 years ago.

What makes it so special?

Well, once upon a time, building 1,000 feet into the sky was completely normal... 🧵 The name Meteora literally means "suspended in the air", a fitting name for the floating monasteries.

But these weren't built accidentally, they were meticulously crafted to be read as symbols of dedication centuries later...

The floating city of Venice was founded 1,604 years ago today.

It sounds impossible. How can an entire city float?

But it's not as simple as it appears on the surface — you literally have to look underwater to find the answer... 🧵 Venice is made up of 120 islands, connected by 177 canals and 391 bridges.

But it didn't always look like this.

There's more to ancient amphitheaters than the Colosseum.

The Roman Empire, alone, built over 230 arenas, theaters and stadiums.

So here are some of the very best ones... 🧵

1. Pula Arena, Croatia (68 AD) Apart from hosting futsal games, Pula’s arena is the only one with all four side towers still intact.

This is the Tower of Hercules, in Spain — the oldest lighthouse in the world.

But when the Romans built it 2,000 years ago, they didn't come up with the design by themselves.

They copied the world's first (and greatest) lighthouse, all the way from Egypt... 🧵 First, with the city itself: Alexandria.

Founded by none other than Alexander the Great himself, in 331 BC.

The story goes that there was no chalk to draw the city plans so Alexander used grains of barely instead.

This is the Royal Palace of Naples, in Italy, built 167 years ago.

It feels ancient. Roman. Or maybe even Greek. That's intentional — because this is Neoclassical architecture.

Here's a journey through some of the most breathtaking examples... 🧵 1. Walhalla, Donaustauf, Germany (1842)

Exactly 550 years ago, today, Michelangelo was born.

But he didn't just sculpt David and paint the Sistine Chapel — he's also responsible for some of Italy's most iconic architecture.

Rome and Florence wouldn't be as great as they are today without this man... 🧵 1. Sistine Chapel, Vatican City (1473)

The "Last Judgement" is arguably Michelangelo's greatest masterpiece.

But when he was first offered the opportunity to paint the chapel, he almost refused.

He was a sculptor, not a painter, after all...

1,488 years ago, the Hagia Sophia made the impossible seem possible.

It was a masterpiece for its time, with a colossal dome unlike any other the world had ever seen.

Here's how it changed the ancient world forever... 🧵 In the heart of ancient Constantinople, stood the Hagia Sophia, originally built in 537 AD by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I

It was a masterpiece of architecture so great that visitors, "knew not whether they were in heaven or on earth."

What does a rebirth of art, culture and architecture look like?

The Renaissance.

So here are 16 of the most awe-inspiring wonders of this cultural revolution... 🧵 1. St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City(1506)

If any building cemented Rome’s status as the home of Christianity, it was this.

The newer (and much grander) basilica replaced the original structure built by Constantine the Great in the 4th century.

2,305 years ago, one building changed the Egyptian world forever.

When it was completed, it stood as the world's tallest man-made structure — second only to the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Here's everything you need to know about the Lighthouse of Alexandria... 🧵 First, with the city itself: Alexandria.

Founded by none other than Alexander the Great himself, in 331 BC.

The story goes that there was no chalk to draw the city plans so Alexander used grains of barely instead.

Its twice the size of the Parthenon — and made from a single piece of stone.

Everything you see here was carved entirely by hand, in just 18 years.

Here's everything you need to know about the greatest marvel of architectural that you've never heard of... 🧵 This is Kailasa Temple, in Maharasha, India.

And it may look like any ordinary ancient wonder, but this is the largest monolithic building in the world.

Meaning it was built in its entirety from just a single piece of rock...

This is a real place — it's Palmanova, in Italy, built 432 years ago.

But why does it look like that?

Here's everything we know about "star" forts and how they completely replaced medieval castles... 🧵 For centuries, traditional medieval castles, with their towering walls were ideal for defending against an invading army.

But in the 15th century, there came a new problem in warfare — gunpowder.

But there also came a clever solution...

This is the Bramante Staircase in the Vatican Museums — an iconic example of the golden ratio.

And it's also one of the most stunning staircases in the world.

The best part? It's not even the best, there are some even more breathtaking... 🧵 1. Palais Garnier, France (1875)

Designed by Charles Garnier, who competed against 171 other architects to create one of Paris' greatest wonders.