The Lighthouse at Alexandria

The Lighthouse at Alexandria was built in 279 B.C. on the small island of Pharos by Sostratus of Cnidus for Ptolemy II. The lighthouse was over 400 feet high. The remains of this imposing structure could still be seen in 1480, when the Mamluk ruler Qa'it Bay constructed a fort on the exact site of the lighthouse.

The Lighthouse of Alexandria, also known as the Pharos of Alexandria, was a tower built between 280 and 247 BC on the island of Pharos at Alexandria, Egypt. Its purpose was to guide sailors into the harbour at night time. 


The lighthouse was the idea of Ptolemy Soter, who took over command of Egypt after the death of Alexander the Great. He ordered construction began in 290 B.C. The project was so daunting that it was completed after his death, by his son Ptolemy Philadelphus. The main architect for the project was a man named Sostratus. Detailed calculations for the project were completed at the famed Library of Alexandria.


The Lighthouse was a huge building that had three parts, one built right on top of another. The lowest part was square and was 183.4 feet high. The middle was octagonal in shape and was 90 feet high. The highest part was a 24-foot-high cylinder. The total height, including the base, was 384 feet, which would be a 40-story building in modern times.


Inside the base was a cylinder that stretched from bottom to top and carried fuel needed to light the fire that burned from the top of the structure. This fire was the beacon during the night. In the daytime, a mirror reflected sunlight and served as the same sort of beacon. (A legend says also that the mirror could used to burn enemy ships before they could sail into the harbor.)