freeze during winter.
The Great Lakes are important to the
economy of North America. Major cities
in the region include Milwaukee,Wis-
Sailboats compete in a race across Lake
Huron.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Great Lakes 147
consin; Chicago, Illinois; Cleveland,
Ohio; Detroit, Michigan; and Toronto,
Ontario. hips carry iron ore, coal, grain,
and manufactured goods to and from
the cities. The Saint Lawrence Seaway
connects the Great Lakes with the
Atlantic Ocean. The lakes also supply
water to nearby cities.
Fishing was once a major industry on
the lakes. However, pollution and other
factors led to its collapse. Today only
some commercial fishing takes place.
Sport fishing is more common.
The Great Lakes are popular recreation
areas. Powerboating and sailing are
popular. Many beaches stretch along the
shores.
#More to explore
Erie, Lake • Huron, Lake • Michigan,
Lake • Ontario, Lake • Saint Lawrence
River and Seaway • Superior, Lake
Great Victoria
Desert
The huge Great Victoria Desert stretches
across southern Australia. It lies in the
states ofWestern Australia and South
Australia. Sand dunes cover much of the
desert. In some places a layer of tightly
packed pebbles covers the ground.
Summers in the Great Victoria Desert
are very hot.Winters are cooler, and
nighttime temperatures may drop below
freezing.
Scattered eucalyptus and acacia trees,
shrubs, and grasses grow in the desert.
Skinks, geckos, monitor lizards, copperhead
snakes, and other reptiles live there.
Mice, dingoes, and foxes also make their
home in the desert.
Few people live in the Great Victoria
Desert. The government of Australia
uses parts of the desert for weapons testing.
Some Aboriginal people live in the
eastern regions. There are also several
national parks in the desert.
#More to explore
Australia • Desert
GreatWall of
China
The GreatWall of China winds across
the Chinese countryside for more than
4,000 miles (6,500 kilometers). It is one
of the biggest structures ever made by
humans. The ancient Chinese built the
wall to protect against invading armies.
Today it is a tourist attraction and a
symbol of China.
The Great
Lakes are at
different
heights above
sea level. Lake
Superior is the
highest, and
Lake Ontario
is the lowest.
148 Great Victoria Desert BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
The GreatWall is made of dirt, stone,
and brick. Its height ranges from 15 to
30 feet (5 to 9 meters), and its width is
15 to 25 feet (5 to 8 meters). Many
watchtowers rise above the wall, and a
roadway runs along the top.
Workers began constructing the Great
Wall in the 600s BC. It was built in several
sections. In the 200s BC the Chinese
joined the sections together. The Chinese
stopped using the wall for protection in
the 1600s. The wall fell into ruin, but in
the 1900s parts of it were rebuilt.
#More to explore
China
Great Zimbabwe
Great Zimbabwe was a city at the heart
of an African trading empire from about
1100 to 1500. Ruins of the city can still
be seen in what is now the country of
Zimbabwe in southern Africa.
The people of Great Zimbabwe were part
of a group called the Shona. The Shona
are Bantu-speaking peoples who still live
in Zimbabwe. They farmed and raised
cattle. They made pottery, sculpture, and
A hut has been built close to the ruins of the
Great Zimbabwe city.
The Great Wall of China winds through a hilly area.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Great Zimbabwe 149
bone tools.However, they are best
known as traders of gold. They traded
along the coast of the IndianOcean.
People stopped living in Great Zimbabwe
before 1500. They left behind stone
and brick buildings that archaeologists
study today.
The oldest part of the city was built on a
hill. Archaeologists call it the Hill Complex.
It may have been a religious center.
Its walls are up to 20 feet (6 meters)
thick and 36 feet (11 meters) high. They
were built partly with odd-shaped rocks
and partly with blocks of cut stone.
South of the Hill Complex is something
known as the Great Enclosure. The
outer wall is about 820 feet (250 meters)
around. It rises 36 feet (11 meters) at its
highest point. The Great Enclosure was
the largest structure in ancient Africa
south of the Sahara. Archaeologists do
not know what it was used for.
#More to explore
Zimbabwe
Greco, El
Paintings by El Greco are known for
their brilliant colors and strong contrasts
of light and shadow. El Greco also
stretched out the figures in his paintings.
Their bodies and limbs are unusually
long, thin, and muscular. Although El
Greco was Greek, he lived much of his
life in Spain, where he became the first
great master of Spanish painting.
El Greco was born in 1541 in Candia
(now Iraklion), on Crete, an island
south of Greece. His original name was
Domenikos Theotokopoulos. Not much
is known about his early life. In the
1560s he traveled to Italy, where he
studied the painting style of Italian artists
of the period. While in Italy he
acquired the nickname El Greco, which
means “The Greek.”
El Greco left Italy for Spain in the late
1570s. He settled in Toledo, Spain,
which was then a religious and cultural
center. He created many religious paintings
