The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus

In 377 B.C the city of Halicarnassus was the capitol of a small kingdom along the Mediterranean coast of Asia Minor. It was that year that Hecatomnus of Mylasa, died and left control of his kingdom to his son Mausolus. Mausolus in his life extended the territory even further so that it finally included most of Asia Minor. Mausolus, with his queen Artimisia, ruled over Halicarnassus and the surrounding territory for 24 years. Mausolus, though he was descending from the local people, spoke Greek and admired the Greek government and their ways of life. He founded many cities of Greek design along the coast and encouraged Greek democratic traditions.
Then in 353 B.C, Mausolus died, leaving Artimisia brokenhearted. As a tribute to him, she decided to build him a splendid tomb. It became a structure so famous that Mausolus's name is now associated with all tombs throughout our modern world - "mausoleum." The building was so beautiful and unique it became one of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the world!
Artemisia then decided that no money was to be spared on this wondrous tomb. She sent messengers to Greece to find the most talented artist of their time. The man who supervised the building of the temple was Scopas. Other famous artists who
helped were, Braxis, Leochares, and Timotheus joined him as well as several hundred others. The tomb was built on a hill overlooking the city. The whole structure sat in an enclosed courtyard. At the center of the courtyard was a stone platform on which the tomb sat. The staircase was flanked by stone lions to the top of the platform. Along the outer wall of the temple there were many statues of gods and goddesses. At each corner were statues of warriors mounted on horseback, guarding the tomb.
At the center of the platform was the tomb itself. Made mostly of marble, it formed a square block which tapered to about 1/3 of the size of the mausoleums 140 foot height. This section was covered with relief sculptures showing action scenes from Greek
myth/history. One statue showed the Greeks in combat with the Amazons, a race of the Warrior Women.
On top of this section of the tomb were 36 slim columns, nine per side, that rose another 1/3 of the height. Standing between each column was another statue. Behind the columns was a solid block that carried the weight of the tombs ceiling. The ceiling, which made up most of the final 1/3 of the height, was in the form of a stepped pyramid. Perched on top was the tomb's most important work of art. There were four massive horses pulling a chariot in which images of Mausolus and his queen Artimisia rode.