The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus (Bodrum, Turkey), was a massive tomb built for Mausolus, the ruler of Caria, c. 350 BCE. The marble structure was so immense and decorated with such an array of striking sculptures that it made it onto the list of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and thereafter gave its name to any large funeral monument - a mausoleum. Following a damaging earthquake, and with many elements cannibalised for the 15th century CE Bodrum Castle, the Mausoleum no longer survives. Podium and column fragments do survive, while some substantial pieces of the Mausoleum's decorative sculpture can today be seen at the British Museum in London.
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Definition
Timeline
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c. 377 BCE - c. 353 BCEReign of Mausolus, semi-independent satrap of Caria.
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c. 367 BCE - 350 BCEThe Mausoleum at Halicarnassus is built, tomb of Mausolus, ruler of Caria.
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225 BCEPhilo of Byzantium records The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
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c. 1494 CEThe Knights of Saint John of Malta use parts of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus in the walls of the castle of Saint Peter at Bodrum.
