6 ancient engineering feats that baffle historians

july 16, 2025

Images: Shutterstock

From the Great Wall of China to the Pyramids of Giza, here are some of history’s greatest engineering marvels that have baffled archaeologists.

Stonehenge

This Bronze Age monument in England is believed to have been built over 1,000 years, starting 3000 BC. It's a ring of standing stones set in the middle of a complex of Neolithic monuments.

Great Wall of China 

Stretching a distance of 21,196 km, it is a series of walls and fortifications. It traverses mountains, deserts and grasslands. Its construction began in 220 BC under the Qin dynasty.

Pyramids of Giza

Built by 20,000 to 30,000 people (2600-2500 BC), the layout of the three main pyramids mirrors the stars in the Orion’s Belt. They’re almost exactly aligned with the cardinal directions.

Nazca Lines

They are a group of large line drawings, visible from a distance in Peru. The lines (200-300 BC) feature animals, plants and insects, and some of them stretch to 1,200 feet.

Machu Picchu

Sitting atop a high ridge in the Peruvian Andes lies the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu (1450-1540 AD). The people who built it had no wheel, written language, iron, or steel.

Colosseum

It was the largest and most complex amphitheatre of the ancient world. Made primarily of concrete, marble, stone, and timber, it was roughly 15 stories tall (built between 70 and 82 AD). 

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