Wondermondo 🢖 Rating of wonders

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Rating of wonders

WorldBlue Four criteria

Kaaba, golden door visible, Saudi Arabia
Kaaba in Makkah (Saudi Arabia) has the highest rating on Earth in the criteria “Story” – 96%. The total weighted rating though is 74.7 (22nd place) because this wonder leaves a lower visual impression if compared to many other wonders around the world. / Tab59, / CC BY-SA 2.0

The rating of wonders in the Wondermondo site has a gradation from 0 (least wondrous) to 100 (most wondrous). This rating is calculated with a special formula, using the data of four criteria. These criteria are:

  1. Visual impression. This is the impression that is created by the wonder on human eyes and other senses. High visual impressions can be created by very ornate buildings, the extreme size of the object, or very unusual sight.
  2. Story. Wonders often are defined by unusual facts or events. These can be important scientific discoveries – e.g. a cave with remnants of another human species but this can be also an unusual story or tradition, e.g. islands where according to local legends live the spirits of deceased people.
  3. Uniqueness. This criterion is assessing the rarity of the wonder in the world. Very few wonders are truly unique.
  4. Mystique. A minor part of wonders (some 3%) has some unexplained features. Most likely, an explanation exists but it has not been found yet. Most frequently these are sites of ghost stories and stories about legendary animals (cryptozoological phenomena) but there happen to be also some very unusual natural phenomena.

Further below are listed the 10 very best wonders after a thorough analysis of more than 11 500 wonders of Earth!

WorldViolet Top 10 wonders of the world

01

Venice

9 out of 10 stars 90.1%

Italy

One of the most unusual and most beautiful cities on Earth, containing an unbelievable amount of art and architectural values. Venice was built on 117 small, closely located islands and was the capital of a powerful state in the 7th – 18th century.

Santa Maria della Salute in the skyline of Venice
Santa Maria della Salute in the skyline of Venice / Murray Foubister, Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0
02

Great Wall of China

8.9 out of 10 stars 89.3%

China / Mongolia

The largest series of fortifications in the world with a total length of 8,852 km, including 6,259.6 km of the actual wall. Constructed in the 5th century BC – 16th century AD by the Chinese to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire against intrusions by northern nomads. The oldest fraction is the Great Wall of Qi (in Shandong) – an approximately 600 km long section of wall built in 685 BC.

Great Wall of China
Great Wall of China / Jakub Hałun, Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
03

Machu Picchu

8.8 out of 10 stars 88.1%

Peru

One of the most spectacular archaeological sites in the world, an Inca town. Machu Picchu is located on a rugged cliff peak and consists of extensive ruins of stone structures. It is believed that the town was built around 1450 as a shelter and center for Inca rulers – and abandoned sometime around 1572.

Machu Picchu, Peru
Machu Picchu / Pedro Szekely, / CC BY-SA 2.0
04

Petra

8.6 out of 10 stars 86.1%

Jordan

The ancient capital city of Nabateans was established around the 6th century BC on the site of the ancient sanctuary. Contains some of the most beautiful and intricate rock-cut architecture in the world, available after walking through a 1.2 km long, narrow gorge.

Al Khazneh, Petra
Al Khazneh, Petra / Sylvain L., Flickr / CC BY 2.0
05

Grand Canyon

8.6 out of 10 stars 85.6%

United States

Possibly the most impressive canyon in the world. This 446 km long canyon is up to 1,800 m deep and has rugged, nearly vertical walls.

Grand Canyon, Arizona
Grand Canyon / Catron S., CC-BY-SA-3.0
06

Victoria Falls (Mosi-oa-Tunya)

8.5 out of 10 stars 84.5%

Zambia / Zimbabwe

World’s largest curtain of falling water, 1,708 meters wide and 108 meters high waterfall. One of the most impressive natural sights in the world.

Part of the largest screen of falling water in the world - Mosi-oa-Tunya (Victoria Falls)
Part of the largest screen of falling water in the world – Mosi-oa-Tunya (Victoria Falls) / Valentina Buj, / CC BY-SA 2.0
07

Iguazu Falls (Salto de Iguaçu)

8.4 out of 10 stars 84.4%

Argentina / Brazil

One of the most enormous and impressive waterfalls in the world. This waterfall is “only” 82 meters tall, but 2,700 meters wide.

Iguazu Falls
Iguazu Falls / Nico Kaiser, Flickr / CC BY 2.0
08

Mount Everest

8.1 out of 10 stars 81.4%

Nepal / Tibet

Earth’s highest mountain, 8,848 m high.

Mount Everest from Tibet
Mount Everest from Tibet / Joe Hastings, Flickr. CC BY 2.0
09

Sagrada Familia

7.9 out of 10 stars 79.4%

Spain

The largest and by far the most impressive Art Nouveau church in the world, designed by Antoni Gaudi; started in 1882 and is due to be completed in 2026.

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona
Sagrada Familia, Barcelona. / Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
10

Hagia Sophia

7.9 out of 10 stars 78.8%

Turkey

A former Orthodox basilica built between 532 – 537 AD, it is now a mosque. Possibly the highest achievement of Byzantine architecture, it has been the largest cathedral in the world for nearly 1000 years.

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul
Hagia Sophia / F.H.Mira, / CC BY-SA 2.0

WorldYellow Linked articles

Angel Falls, Venezuela
Angel Falls / , Flickr / CC BY 2.0

Categories of wonders

Currently, the wonders of the world in Wondermondo are divided into 124 categories and four main realms: geology, biology, archaeology, and architecture.

Hessdalen lights in February 2015. Two moving lights are seen - one in the sky (this is not Moon) and one over the forest.
Hessdalen lights in February 2015. Two moving lights are seen – one in the sky (this is not Moon) and one over the forest. / Jesper Brodersen, screen capture from Youtube video.

What is a wonder?

Many wonders are linked to a certain place. The aim of Wondermondo is to list and describe such places all around our planet. Thus, the name “wonder” on this website means a surprising place on our planet.

Eaglehawk Neck tesselated pavement
Eaglehawk Neck tesselated pavement. / LBM1948, Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

About this project

Wondermondo informs you about the most unusual and interesting wonders of the world. This is a unique website because facts and science matter here but at the same time stories are told in a simple, accessible way.


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