Graphic reconstruction of the lighthouse according to a comprehensive study of 2006.

The lighthouse of Alexandria (or The Pharos of Alexandria, Greek: ὁ Φάρος τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας) was a tower built in the 3rd century BC (between 285 and 247 BC) on the island of Pharos in Alexandria, Egypt to serve as that port's landmark, and later, its lighthouse. Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1500x1276, 182 KB) This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or less. ... PHAROS IPA: [feÉ™.rÊŒs] (Platform for Search of Audiovisual Resources Across Online Spaces) is the name given to a planned (and currently being developed) European Internet multimedia search engine led by the Italian system integrator Engineering Ingegneria Informatica SpA. // The PHAROS platform, co-financed by the European Commission and... This article is about the city in Egypt. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... GPS redirects here. ... Events March 6 - Treaty of Toledo - Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain recognize African conquests of Afonso of Portugal and he cedes the Canary Islands to Spain Great standing on the Ugra river - Muscovy becomes independent from the Golden Horde. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The 3rd century BC started the first day of 300 BC and ended the last day of 201 BC. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period. ... PHAROS IPA: [feÉ™.rÊŒs] (Platform for Search of Audiovisual Resources Across Online Spaces) is the name given to a planned (and currently being developed) European Internet multimedia search engine led by the Italian system integrator Engineering Ingegneria Informatica SpA. // The PHAROS platform, co-financed by the European Commission and... This article is about the city in Egypt. ...

With a height variously estimated at between 115 ~ 150 meters (377 ~ 492 ft) it was among the tallest man-made structures on Earth for many centuries, and was identified as one of the Seven Wonders of the World by Antipater of Sidon. It may have been the third tallest building after the two Great Pyramids (of Khufu and Khafra) for its entire life. Some scholars estimate a much taller height exceeding 180 meters that would make the tower the tallest building up to the 14th century.^{[citation needed]} For other uses, see Wonders of the World (disambiguation). ... Antipater of Sidon (2nd century BC) is an ancient Greek writer and poet best known for his list of Seven Wonders of the World. ... For other uses, see Khufu (disambiguation). ... The Pyramid of Khafra and the Great Sphinx of Giza Portrait of Khafra, originally found at Mit Rahina, now residing in the Egyptian Museum, in Cairo. ...

History

Pharos was a small island just off the coast of Alexandria. It was linked to the mainland by a man-made connection named the Heptastadion, which thus formed one side of the city's harbor. As the Egyptian coast is very flat and lacking in the kind of landmark used at the time for navigation, a marker of some sort at the mouth of the harbour was deemed necessary - a function the Pharos was initially designed to serve. Use of the building as a lighthouse, with a fire and reflective mirrors at the top, is thought to date to around the 1st century AD, during the Roman period. Prior to that time the Pharos served solely as a landmark or day beacon. The Hepstatadion was a giant bridge-like feature built by the people of Alexandria. ... This article is about determination of position and direction on or above the surface of the earth. ... A day beacon is an unlighted nautical navigational aid. ...

The Chinese were familiar with the story of the lighthouse in Alexandria by at least the Song Dynasty (960–1279) period. In his book Zhu Fan Zhi, Zhao Rugua wrote in 1225 of a minaret lighthouse in Alexandria, Egypt, perhaps the ancient Lighthouse of Alexandria (Wade-Giles spelling): For other uses, see Liu Song Dynasty. ... Zhao Rugua[1][2](traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: , alternatively Chau Ju-Kua or Chou Ju-kua, 1170 - 1228) was a customs inspector at the city of Quanzhou during the late Song dynasty who wrote a two-volume book called Zhufan Zhi (諸蕃志, or Chu-fan-chi, literally Description of the Barbarous Peoples... // The Teutonic Order is expelled from Transylvania. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Wade-Giles, sometimes abbreviated Wade, is a Romanization (phonetic notation and transliteration) system for the Chinese language based on Mandarin. ...

The country of O-Ken-Tho (Alexandria) belongs to Egypt (Wu-Ssu-Li). According to tradition, in olden times a stranger (i jen), Chhu-Ko-Ni by name, built on the shore of the sea a great pagoda, underneath which the earth was excavated to make two rooms, well connected and thoroughly hidden. In one vault was stored grain, and in the other arms. The tower was 200 ft. high [Note: chang = 10 feet, chhih = 1 foot]. Four horses abreast could ascend (by a winding ramp) to two-thirds of its height. Below the tower, in the middle, there was a well of great size connected by a tunnel with the great river. To protect this pagoda from foreign soldiers, the whole country guarded it against all enemies. In the upper and lower parts of it twenty thousand men could readily be stationed as a guard or to make sorties. At the summit there was an immense mirror. There was an old story said that if warships of other countries tried to make an attack, the mirror detected them beforehand, and the troops were ready to repel it. But in recent years there came (to Alexandria) a foreigner, who asked to be given work in the guardhouse below the tower, and he was employed to sprinkle and to sweep. For years no one entertained any suspicion of him, but suddenly one day he found an opportunity to steal the mirror and throw it into the sea, after which he made off.^[1] The Chinese Pagoda is a landmark in Birmingham. ...

The Lighthouse of Alexandria

Image File history File links Pharos_of_Alexandria1. ... Image File history File links Pharos_of_Alexandria1. ...

Construction and destruction

The lighthouse was completed in the 3rd century BC, after having been initiated by Satrap (governor) Ptolemy I Soter, Egypt's first Hellenistic ruler and a general of Alexander the Great. After Alexander died unexpectedly at age 33, Ptolemy Soter (Saviour, named so by the inhabitants of Rhodes) made himself king in 305 BC and ordered the construction of the Pharos shortly thereafter. The building was finished during the reign of his son, Ptolemy Philadelphos. Look up satrap in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Ptolemy I Soter (Greek: , Ptolemaios Soter, i. ... For the film of the same name, see Alexander the Great (1956 film). ... 309–246 BC), with Arsinoë II. Ptolemy II Philadelphus (Greek: Πτολεμαίος Φιλάδελφος, 309 BC–246 BC), was the king of Ptolemaic Egypt from 281 BC to 246 BC. He was the son of the founder of the Ptolemaic kingdom Ptolemy I Soter and Berenice. ...

According to legend, Sostratus was forbidden by Ptolemy from putting his name on his work. But the architect left the following inscription on the base's walls nonetheless: Sostratus, the son of Dexiphanes, the Cnidian, dedicated (or erected) this to the Saviour Gods, on behalf of those who sail the seas, the original Greek inscription ΣΟΣΤΡΑΤΟΣ ΔΕΞΙΦΑΝΟΥ ΚΝΙΔΙΟΣ ΘΕΟΙΣ ΣΩΤΕΡΣΙΝ ΥΠΕΡ ΤΩΝ ΠΛΩΙΖΟΜΕΝΩΝ literally means: Sostratos of Dexiphanes [meaning: son of Dexiphanes] the Cnidian to Saviour Gods for the seafarers (or sea-faring [ones]). These words were hidden under a layer of plaster, on top of which was chiselled another inscription honouring Ptolemy the king as builder of the Pharos. After centuries the plaster wore away, revealing the name of Sostratus. Sostratus of Cnidus (born 3rd century BC), was a Greek architect. ... For other uses, see Architect (disambiguation). ...

Fort Qaitbey was built on the site of the Pharos in the 15th Century, using some of its fallen masonry.

There are ancient claims the light from the lighthouse could be seen from up to 35 miles (56 km) away. Unconfirmed legends claim the light from Pharos could burn enemy ships before they reached shore. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x960, 211 KB) 4 college students from Montclair State University gang up against their friend and fuckfuck wrestle him to the ground in a snowball fight that occured in fuck2003. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1280x960, 211 KB) 4 college students from Montclair State University gang up against their friend and fuckfuck wrestle him to the ground in a snowball fight that occured in fuck2003. ... Citadel of Qaitbay, built in 1477 Front view of Citadel of Qaitbay The Citadel of Qaitbay (or the Fort of Qaitbay) is a 15th century defensive building located on the Mediterranean sea coast of Egypt, not far from the ruins of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, in Alexandria, Egypt. ... A legend (Latin, legenda, things to be read) is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude. ...

Constructed from large blocks of light-coloured stone, the tower was made up of three stages: a lower square section with a central core, a middle octagonal section, and, at the top, a circular section. At its apex was positioned a mirror which reflected sunlight during the day; a fire was lit at night. Extant Roman coins struck by the Alexandrian mint show that a statue of a triton was positioned on each of the building's four corners. A statue of Poseidon stood atop the tower during the Roman period. For blocks on Wikipedia, please see Wikipedia:Blocking policy. ... Look up stone in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about wave reflectors (mainly, specular reflection of visible light). ... Prism splitting light High Resolution Solar Spectrum Sunlight in the broad sense is the total spectrum of the electromagnetic radiation given off by the Sun. ... For other uses, see Fire (disambiguation). ... Triton is a mythological Greek god, the messenger of the deep. ... Neptune reigns in the city of Bristol. ...

A fanciful 16th century interpretation of the Pharos by Martin Heemskerck.

The Pharos' walls were strengthened in order to withstand the pounding of the waves through the use of molten lead to hold its masonry together^{[citation needed]}, and possibly as a result the building survived the longest of the Seven Wonders - with the sole exception of the Great Pyramid of Giza. It was still standing when the Muslim traveller Ibn Jubayr visited the city in 1183. He said of it that: "Description of it falls short, the eyes fail to comprehend it, and words are inadequate, so vast is the spectacle." It appears that in his time there was a church located on the top^{[citation needed]}. Pharos of Alexandria The Pharos of Alexandria, an ancient lighthouse, is depicted in this hand-coloured engraving by Martin Heemskerck. ... Pharos of Alexandria The Pharos of Alexandria, an ancient lighthouse, is depicted in this hand-coloured engraving by Martin Heemskerck. ... ... The Great Pyramid of Giza is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza Necropolis bordering what is now Cairo, Egypt in Africa, and is the only remaining member of the Seven Wonders of the World. ... Ibn Jubayr (1145-1217) (Arabic: ) was an Arab-Spanish geographer, traveler, and poet. ... Events Three-year old Emperor Go-Toba ascends to the throne of Japan after the forced abdication of his brother Antoku during the Genpei War William of Tyre excommunicated by the newly appointed Heraclius of Jerusalem, firmly ending their struggle for power Andronicus I Comnenus becomes the Byzantine emperor Births... For the architectural structure, see Church (building). ...

The tower was severely damaged by two earthquakes in 1303 and 1323, to the extent that the Arab traveler Ibn Battuta reported not being able to enter the ruin. Even the stubby remnant disappeared in 1480, when the then-Sultan of Egypt, Qaitbay, built a medieval fort on the former location of the building, using some of the fallen stone. The remnants of the Pharos that were incorporated into the walls of Fort Qaitbey are clearly visible due to their excessive size in comparison to surrounding masonry. This article is about the natural seismic phenomenon. ... // Events 24 February: Battle of Roslin 20 April: Pope Boniface VIII founds the University of Rome La Sapienza Edward I of England reconquers Scotland (see also: William Wallace, Wars of Scottish Independence) The Khilji Dynasty conquers time travel Births Saint Birgitta, Swedish saint (died 1373) Gegeen Khan, Mongol emperor of... August 12 - The Treaty of Nöteborg between Sweden and Novgorod (Russia) is signed, regulating the border for the first time Canonization of Saint Thomas Aquinas Lithuania: in Letters of Gediminas, Vilnius is named as the capital city Pharos of Alexandria Lighthouse (one of the Seven Wonders of the world... It has been suggested that Travelling route of Ibn Batuta be merged into this article or section. ... Events March 6 - Treaty of Toledo - Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain recognize African conquests of Afonso of Portugal and he cedes the Canary Islands to Spain Great standing on the Ugra river - Muscovy becomes independent from the Golden Horde. ... Al-Ashraf Sayf al-Din Qait Bay was the eighteenth Burji Mamluk sultan of Egypt from 872-901/1468-1496. ... Look up stone in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... PHAROS IPA: [feə.rʌs] (Platform for Search of Audiovisual Resources Across Online Spaces) is the name given to a planned (and currently being developed) European Internet multimedia search engine led by the Italian system integrator Engineering Ingegneria Informatica SpA. // The PHAROS platform, co-financed by the European Commission and... Citadel of Qaitbay, built in 1477 Front view of Citadel of Qaitbay The Citadel of Qaitbay (or the Fort of Qaitbay) is a 15th century defensive building located on the Mediterranean sea coast of Egypt, not far from the ruins of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, in Alexandria, Egypt. ...

Recent archaeological research

Some remains of the lighthouse were found on the floor of Alexandria's Eastern Harbour by divers in 1994. More of the remains have subsequently been revealed by satellite imaging^{[citation needed]}.

A Nova program chronicled the underwater discovery of the fabled Pharos lighthouse.^[2] It is possible to go diving and see the ruins. Nova is a popular science television series from the USA produced by WGBH and can be seen on PBS and in more than 100 countries. ...

Significance

Pharos became the etymological origin of the word 'lighthouse' in Greek (φάρος), Bulgarian (фар) and many Romance languages, such as French (phare), Italian (faro), Portuguese (farol), Spanish (faro), Romanian and Catalan (far). The Romance languages (sometimes referred to as Romanic languages) are a branch of the Indo-European language family that comprises all the languages that descend from Latin, the language of the Roman Empire. ... Catalan IPA: (català IPA: or []) is a Romance language, the national language of Andorra, and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Balearic Islands, Catalonia and Valencia, and in the city of LAlguer in the Italian island of Sardinia. ...

The design of minarets in many early Islamic mosques many centuries later followed a similar three-stage design to that of the Pharos, attesting to the building's broader architectural influence.^{[citation needed]} This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

Pharos in culture

The Pharos of Abuqir, an ancient funerary monument thought to be modeled after the Pharos at Alexandria, with which it is approximately contemporaneous.

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In architecture

Tower of Hercules, a Roman lighthouse modelled on the Pharos

• A well-preserved ancient tomb in the town of Abu Qir, 20 kilometres east of Alexandria, is thought to be a scaled-down model of the Alexandria Pharos. Known colloquially under various names - the Pharos of Abuqir, the Abuqir funerary monument and Burg al-Arab (Arab's Tower) - it consists of a 3-story tower, approximately 20 meters in height, with a square base, a hexagonal midsection and cylindrical upper section, like the building upon which it was apparently modeled. It dates to the reign of Ptolemy II (285-246 BCE), and is therefore likely to have been built at about the same time as the Alexandria Pharos.
• The Tower of Hercules, near A Coruña in Spain, a 2nd century AD Roman lighthouse, is closely modelled on the Alexandrian Pharos.
• A replica of the Lighthouse of Alexandria was constructed in the Window of the World Cultural Park in Shenzhen, China.
• The design of the George Washington Masonic National Memorial in Alexandria, Virginia was partially inspired by the Lighthouse of Alexandria.
• The fate of the Lighthouse of Alexandria from the Arab conquest till its collapse in the 14th century has been investigated by Doris Behrens-Abouseif in her article "The Islamic History of the Lighthouse of Alexandria" (in: Muqarnas XXIII [2006], pp. 1-14)

Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 445 × 599 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,903 × 2,562 pixels, file size: 548 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 445 × 599 pixelsFull resolution‎ (1,903 × 2,562 pixels, file size: 548 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File historyClick on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time. ... Tower of Hercules View of the Spanish city of A Coruña from the top of the tower The Tower of Hercules (Torre de Hércules), is an ancient Roman lighthouse located on a peninsula about 1. ... AbÅ« QÄ«r (Arabic أبو قير) (also Abukir or Aboukir) is a village on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt, 23 kilometers (14. ... Head of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (309-246 BC), with Arsinoë II. Ptolemy II Philadelphus (309-246 BC), was of a delicate constitution, no Macedonian warrior-chief of the old style. ... Tower of Hercules View of the Spanish city of A Coruña from the top of the tower The Tower of Hercules (Torre de Hércules), is an ancient Roman lighthouse located on a peninsula about 1. ... Location Coordinates : Time zone : CET (GMT +1) - summer : CEST (GMT +2) General information Native name La Coruña (Galician) Spanish name La Coruña Postal code 15xxx Area code 34 (Spain) + 981 (La Coruña) Website http://www. ... Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... Window of the World entrance sign Window of the World entrance The Window of the World (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) is a theme park located in the western part of the city of Shenzhen in the Peoples Republic of China. ... For other uses, see Shenzhen (disambiguation). ... George Washington Masonic National Memorial George Washington Masonic National Memorial is a masonic lodge and memorial dedicated to the memory of George Washington, the first president of the United States of America and a Mason. ... Location in Virginia Coordinates: , Country State Founded 1749 Government  - Mayor William D. Euille Area  - Total 15. ...

In books

Matthew Reilly uses this ancient wonder as the location of a piece of the golden capstone in his latest novel Seven Ancient Wonders. Also in the cultural section from Book 2 of Cambridge Latin Course, the Pharos of Alexandria was also mentioned along with the history of Alexandria, onne of the greatest international port in the ancient history. Matthew Reilly, born July 2nd, 1974 Sydney, is an Australian action thriller writer. ... This article is about the fiction novel. ... The Cambridge Latin Course (CLC) is a series of textbooks published by Cambridge University Press, used to teach Latin to secondary school students. ...

For an important new analysis of the history in the Islamic period see: Doris Behrens-Abouseif, The Islamic History of the Lighthouse of Alexandria (Muqarnas – an Annual on the Visual Culture of the Islamic World – Vol. 23[2006] pp.3-14) ISBN 90-04-15492-6 ISBN 978-90-04-15492-6

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Lighthouse of Alexandria

• Knidos
• List of buildings
• List of disasters
• List of lighthouses and lightvessels

Knidos or Cnidus (modern-day Tekir in Turkey) is an ancient Greek city in Asia Minor, once part of the country of Caria. ... This is a list of famous or notable buildings with articles about them. ... A disaster is a natural or man-made event that negatively affects life, property, livelihood or industry, often resulting in permanent changes to human societies, ecosystems and environment. ... . ...

References

v • d • e Ancient Egypt topics Architecture · Art · Burial customs · Chronology · Cuisine · Dynasties · Geography · History · Mathematics · Medicine · Religion · Pharaohs · People · Language · Sites · Technology · Writing The pyramids are the most recognizable symbols of the civilization of ancient Egypt. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 532 pixelsFull resolution (4372 × 2906 pixel, file size: 4. ... The well preserved temple of Horus at Edfu is an exemplar of Egyptian architecture The Nile valley has been the site of one of the most influential civilizations which developed a vast array of diverse structures encompassing ancient Egyptian architecture. ... Ancient Egyptian art refers to the style of painting, sculpture, crafts and architecture developed by the civilization in the lower Nile Valley from c. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... An Egyptian couple harvesting from a painting in the tomb from the early Ramessid period. ... This page lists articles on dynasties of Ancient Egypt. ... Archaeological evidence indicates that a distinct culture was developing in the Nile valley from before 5000 BC. What is now called the Pharaonic Period is dated from around 3100 BC, when Egypt became a unified state, until its survival as an independent state ceased in 332 BC, with its conquest... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... For other uses, see Pharaoh (disambiguation). ... The following is a list of Ancient Egyptian people. ... Map of Ancient Egypt List of Ancient Egyptian sites, throughout all of Egypt and Nubia Sites are listed with their classical name whenever possible, else their modern name and last if no other available their ancient name. ... The characteristics of Ancient Egyptian technology are indicated by a set of artifacts and customs that lasted for thousands of years. ... The writing systems of ancient Egypt include: Egyptian hieroglyphs Cursive hieroglphs Hieratic Demotic the Coptic alphabet Other texts discovered in Egypt and dating to the period before Islam include those written in: the Greek alphabet the Latin alphabet the Cuneiform script the Old Persian cuneiform script Tifinagh the South Arabian... Egyptology · Egyptologists · Egyptian Museum · Ancient Egypt portal The Great Sphinx of Giza against Khafres Pyramid at the Giza pyramid complex. ... Egyptologist is the designation given to an archaeologist or historian who specialises in Egyptology, the scientific study of Ancient Egypt and its antiquities. ... Main entrance of the Egyptian Museum The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, known commonly as the Egyptian Museum, in Cairo, Egypt, is home to the most extensive collection of pharaonic antiquities in the world. ...

Coordinates: 31°12′51″N, 29°53′06″E Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...