The Lighthouse of Alexandria

 The Light House of Alexandria is one of the Ancient Seven Wonders.  Not only Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, but this lighthouse is also included in the list of ancient seven wonders.  This light house was the first lighthouse in the world and world history.  It was considered a sample of wonderful architectural art.

This light house is also called the pharaoh of Alexandria.This grand and incredible light house was built in 380 BC on the pharaoh island of Alexandria city of Egypt.



The city of Alexandria is one of the 70 cities that were built by Alexander the Great and the world's first lighthouse, the Lighthouse of Alexandria, was built in this city.The height of the Lighthouse of Alexandria ranged from 400 to 450 ft.  Due to its high height, it was the second man-made structure after the Pyramid of Giza.

Why lighthouse built ? 

The main purpose of building this lighthouse was to show the way to the ships.  One of the biggest reasons for the destruction of sea ships in ancient times was the loss of direction due to which they had to face many dangers, To overcome these dangers and to make the trade route better, this light house was built.

According to historians, about 2,300 years ago, Alexandria was one of the major cities of the Mediterranean Sea.  Due to its proximity to the Nile River, it was also a very large trading center and a large port.

After the death of Alexander the Great, his general Ptolemy I was declared king and he built this amazing incredible light house.

Ancient Seven Wonders

This grand lighthouse was made three-storeyed.  The lowest part was made in a square shape, which would have been about 100 feet in height.  The central part of this was made in the octagonal shape.  The height of the central part would have been about 115 feet.  The top part of this light house was made in cylinder shape.  Its height was 60 feet!  At the top of this light house, a huge statue of the god of the sea posiden (Greek mythology) was made.The main attraction of this lighthouse was its amazing architecture and a huge mirror.


This huge mirror used to reflect the sunlight during the day.  The bright light of the Sun emanating from this glass could be seen for many 100 kilometers in the sea.  Historians say that the light emanating from the light house was so strong that if that light fell on a ship, it would burn to ashes.  This glass was used with great care.  During the night, a very strong fire was lit in the top part of this light house, with the help of which the ship could not lose its way even in the night.The lighthouse was made of white granite marble.  Its grandeur was so great that Caesar praised it in his book.

This light house did its work for centuries, but due to frequent earthquakes in the 14th century, this light house was destroyed.  In the 15th century, the Sultan(king) of Egypt built a fort named Citadel of Qaitbay  on the same place from the remaining remains of the light house and the stones.

According to a report, a total of 3 million dollars would have been spent to build this lighthouse at that time.





In 1968, UNESCO sent a team of archaeoligists to the Mediterranean Sea to find the remains of the Light House.  Archaeologists found the remains of the Light House and confirmed that the remains of the Light House are still present in the Mediterranean Sea.

Lighthouse of Alexandria Today 

When the team of Archeology of France was sent here for research, they found a lot of remains.  There, a statue of the third century was found, which is said to be of Ptolemy  Second.  Historians believe that the construction of this light house started at the time of Ptolemy I and ended at the time of Ptolemy II.

Coins from the 2nd century in Alexandria also depict this lighthouse.  This lighthouse was one of the longest-lived buildings in the ancient Seven Wonders.  Today there is an underwater park by the Egyptian government where expatriates can take a dip in the sea and see the remains of it.