Lighthouse of Alexandria

The Lighthouse of Alexandria is one of the most important and famous Alexandria landmarks and one of the most popular and attractive tourist destinations in Egypt. It is a symbol of it and is also one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

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Where is the Lighthouse of Alexandria located?

The Alexandria Lighthouse is located on Pharos Island in the city’s eastern port district, near the historic Qaitbay Citadel.

Who built the Lighthouse of Alexandria?

The Ptolemies were responsible for building the Lighthouse of Alexandria between the years 280 and 247 BC.

Why was the lighthouse of Alexandria built?

The lights were most important for telling ships passing by where the different ports were. Its job was to warn sailors about potentially dangerous navigational hazards like underwater rocks or piers on the shore. This is different from the position of modern lighthouses, which is to help ships cross the water safely. In the year 280 B.C., work on building the lighthouse began.
Before Alexandria was built at the end of the fourth century B.C., Egyptian seaports were constructed at the mouths of the Nile branches. Because the largest of the ancient Nile branches, the Canopic branch, was so important, a lighthouse was built at the entrance to the eastern port on the western side. This lighthouse helped ships coming into Egypt find their way to Alexandria. Alexandria wasn’t built until the end of the fourth century B.C. These harbors were where the vessel planned to stop when they finally got there.

Lighthouse of Alexandria’s Height:

The Lighthouse of Alexandria is more than 350 feet tall and is adorned with massive pink granite sculptures of Ptolemaic pharaohs and queens. The lighthouse, which would have been highly illuminated, was built with huge chunks of white limestone.

Lighthouse of Alexandria Facts:

• The building of this lighthouse began during the reign of Ptolemy I, and it was finished during the reign of Ptolemy II, who took over after his father died.
• Sostratus, a Greek engineer and architect, was in charge of both the building’s design and how it was put together.
• People often use the location of the island where the first lighthouse ever built in the ancient world was put up to figure out what the name of the building means.
• People in the ancient world thought this building was so impressive that they named it one of the Seven Wonders of the World. One of the reasons for this was how tall it was, which was about 130 meters.
• There is a story that a fire was lit at night in the cylinder-shaped top part of the lighthouse to help ships find their way. During the day, the Greeks used the lighthouse as a statue of a god, the sea. Visitors could sit on the balcony and watch the world go by.
• Even though several earthquakes had shaken the lighthouse, the famous one that happened in Egypt in 1303 AD was the one that destroyed it and the rest of the country. One of these buildings was the Lighthouse of Alexandria, which was also one of these buildings.
• After the earthquake in 1304 A.D., which caused damage to the lighthouse, Prince Rukn al-Din Baybars tried to fix it.
• In the last years of the Circassian Mamluks’ rule, when Sultan Al-Ashraf Qaytbay was in charge, he went to the city of Alexandria and gave orders for a new tower to be built where the old lighthouse had been. These days, this building is called the Citadel of Sultan Qaytbay.

 

Historians agree that the lighthouse was significant for keeping sailors safe as they traveled from the Mediterranean Sea back to the Great Harbor. The builders were proud of this achievement because they had built the tallest building in the world. The scientific community was also interested and drawn to the fact that it was a mystery, and it was thought to be one of the seven wonders of the ancient world because it was so beautiful.

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