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| The Pharos Lighthouse The Pharos Lighthouse, one of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World. So much has been written about the Pharos that I will only provide an overview of it along with some photos which were taken over the past couple of years which you won't find on other sites dealing on the subject. During the early years after Alexandria was founded in 331-332 B.C. navigating ships of war or trade to Alexandria was difficult at best, due to there being few landmarks and little or no relief when the city was viewed from the sea. As a result, shortly after Ptolemy I Soter came to power in 305 B.C., he saw the need for a landmark to be built which would be easily seen by ships at sea and so ordered that a navigation marker be built on the Pharos Island, which was a small island lying approximately 1.5 kilometers off the coast of the city which was linked to the mainland by a causeway that was seven stadia in length known as the Heptastadion which separated the eastern and western harbors of Alexandria.
Various past representations of the Pharos Lighthouse
Construction:
Construction of this navigation marker took approximately 12 years, and was not completed by Ptolemy Soter. His son, Ptolemy Philapelphus, completed construction between 285 and 247 B.C. The architect, Sostratus of Cnidus, Son of Dexiphanes, had designed and built a structure, which we now know as the Pharos Lighthouse, that is thought to have been between 115 and 150 meters tall consisting of three tiers. The first, or lower tier had a square exterior and circular interior design and was perhaps 60 meters in height. The second tier was octagonal is shape with 18-meters side panels (8-each), and was 27.5 meters in height. The third and uppermost tier was circular in construction with a height of just over 7 meters. Some references indicate that there was a cupola mounted on the top of the third tier which held a statue of Zues, others state that there was also a statue of Poseidon along with Zues. Still other references suggest that the statues may have been the twin sons of Zues and Leda. And further still, other references state that the upper tier of the Pharos was open, with statues mounted on a lower level. Access to the Pharos was by way of a long ramp supported by large vaulting arches which led to the interior which may have consisted of 50 service rooms and allowed pack animals to carry firewood up to the third tier in order to provide a constant fuel supply for the signal fire. Construction materials consisted of stones and blocks of granite, calcite, quartzite, limestone, sandstone, and greywacke (a dark clay-like sandstone). The structure may have been covered in white stone or masonry. Additionally, construction styles during this time used a blend of Greek and Egyptian styles resulting in the presence of sculptures and statues taken from ancient Egyptian sites elsewhere in Egypt. Use of the Pharos as a lighthouse is thought to have commenced sometime during the 1st century A.D. with the installation of a fire a reflective mirrors at the top. However, little, if any supporting documentation has been located to prove this. The light from the Pharos was said to have been seen almost 100 miles out at sea. It was also said that the light reflected by the lighthouse could destroy enemy ships before they were near Alexandria. Or, that the reflector used in the lighthouse was of such magnification and quality, that Alexandria could spy on the city of Constantinople to watch the goings on! The German Scholar Hermann Thiersch, authored the book "Great Lighthouse of Alexandria" (published 1909) which is still considered one of the best references concerning the Pharos. His work provides us with the structure's basic design as well as some of the history of the lighthouse. However, his work does not provide much detail about the lighthouse or the method of light used.
Drawing by Thiersch illustrating modifications of the Pharos over time.
The Destruction of the Pharos:
The Pharos stood for almost two millennia, weathering a tidal wave (365 A.D.), and the harsh storms that occur along the coastal region, and numerous earthquakes. This last, earthquakes, eventually caused the final demise of the Pharos Lighthouse Between 320 and 1303 A.D., twenty-two earthquakes where recorded as occurring in Alexandria. In 796 A.D. it is suspected that the Pharos may have lost its upper tier as a result of an earthquake. It is said that a mosque may have been built on tope of the second tier sometime afterwards. In 950 and again in 956 A.D. Alexandria experienced earthquakes serious enough to cause enough damage to the Pharos that it became destabilized resulting in a reduction of its height by 22 meters. In 1272, Sultan Salah el-Din attempted to repair the lighthouse, however, on 08 August 1303, a major earthquake struck the entire Mediterranean region, causing the final destruction of the Pharos Lighthouse. In 1365, while under attack by the Cypriot King, Pierre I de Lusignan, that the local Mamluk rulers attempted to block the entrance of the harbor using stones and blocks from the remains of the Pharos by throwing them into the sea. A century after the final destruction of the lighthouse, Sultan Qait Bey ordered the removal of the remains of the Pharos and constructed his fort in Alexandria between 1477 and 1480 A.D. on the foundation of the lighthouse where it still stands today. It is said that some of the stones and blocks of the original lighthouse were used in the construction of the fort.
Rediscovery of the Pharos:
The remains of the Pharos located in the waters adjacent to its original location remained forgotten until as early as 1910, when French Engineer, Gaston Jondet was conducting an enlargement of the Western Harbor and noticed what may well have been the remains of ancient structures underwater. Then, in 1961, an Egyptian diver and spear fisherman by the name of Kamal Abou EL-Saadat noticed some stone ruins lying at the foot of Fort Qaitby, as well as along the Fort Silsileh (Cape Lochias) promontory. In June of 1962, Saadat managed, with the assistance of the Egyptian Navy, to raise a life-size male statue made of Aswan granite from dating from the Hellenistic period from the waters just off of Fort Silsileh. The following November, with the assistance of the same group from the Egyptian Navy, he was able to raise another statue of Aswan granite from the waters just off of Fort Qait Bey. This statue stood 7-meters in height and came to be referred to as the "Isis Faria" and may have been associated with a colossus discovered at Abu Kir bay by Prince Omar Tousoun 33 years earlier. Kamal Abou EL-Saadat continued to explore the area and subsequently developed crude, yet detailed, maps of the area next to Qait Bey, the Eastern Harbor (Royal Quarters), Silsileh, and Chatby areas. He later went on to map the areas of Abu Kir Bay and Maamoura. In 1968, he and Scottish Archaeologist, Honor Frost, conducted extensive surveys of the site of the Pharos Lighthouse.
Honor Frost (L) and Kamal Abou el-Saadat (R).
In 1994 a team of archaeological scuba divers led by Jean-Yves Empereur located stones and architectural items which are believed to be associated with the Pharos. Work on the site has been ongoing each year since, with nearly 3000 items having been identified.
For detailed information on the archaeological work accomplished on the Pharos Lighthouse, please visit the Centre d-Etudes Alexandrines (CEA) website at: http://www.cealex.org/sitecealex/navigation/FENETR_NAVfouilles_E.htm
The Pharos Lighthouse site today:
Recreational diving is now allowed on the Pharos Lighthousesite with the purchase of local permits (Local dive centers will purchase these for you) and the site is located only about 5-minutes away by boat. The site lies at between 5 and 9 meters and covers a fairly large area of approximately 2.5 hectares. There is no apparent order to the layout of the site as there are stone columns, blocks, capitals, and foundations laying everywhere one looks. There are 5 headless sphinxes still located on the site, 4 of which are easy to locate, parts of a broken sarcophagus, and assorted other architectural items. Archaeological work is still being conducted at certain times throughout the year, with artifacts being cleaned, photographed, measured, and in some cases, relocated. Please be aware that it is against Egyptian law to take, damage, or modify any artifacts from this site.
References:
http://www.unesco.org/csi/pub/source/alex2.htm Underwater Archaeology in Egypt (Ibrahim Atteya Darwish) Alexandria and the Sea, Maritime Origins and Underwater Explorations, (Kimberly Williams M.A. 2004) International Handbook of Underwater Archaeology (By Carol Ruppé, Jan Barstad) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pharos_of_Alexandria http://www.greece.org/Alexandria/cea/cea1.htm http://www.cealex.org/sitecealex/navigation/FENETR_NAVfouilles_E.htm http://www.houseofptolemy.org/housealx.htm http://threegracesguy.com/PharosLighthouse.aspx (For the Numismaticists out there....lots of coins with the Pharos Lighthouse on them.)
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