The Pharos; Giving hope and light for a thousand years
-One of the ancient worlds seven wonders-
A recreation of the lighthouse of Alexandria
The little Egyptian city of Rhacotis, or Rhakotis in Greek(modern-day Alexandria), already existed in 1900 B.C with its perfect location by the Mediterranean, protected from huge waves and raging sea by the isle of Pharos as well as a pearl band of smaller islands serving as a natural breakwater, giving the harbour safe anchorage conditions. Adding to its advantages, it was fed with sweet waters both from lake Maryut and the Nile river. The city of Rhacotis had long served as a coastal shipping facility and haven supplying the isle of Pharos with goods.
According to Homer, the famous Hellenic writer, the port by the isle of Pharos existed in antiquity. He even described this island in his classic literary work, Odysseus, where Menelaus was stranded on the island of Pharos on his return from the Trojan war.
The old harbour still exists today, but unfortunately at the bottom of the sea on the north side of today’s Ras El-Tin. The city was a centre of civilization, it controlled the commerce between Egypt and the rest of the Mediterranean. Its position was perfect as a vital crossing point for merchants on their maritime routes between Asia and Europe. Egypt was a major producer of grain in the ancient and medieval world likewise cotton was almost as significant.
An unexpected delay and preparation for the future
There is no doubt that the riches associated with the trade, the potential and strategic position of the location and the diversity of ideas and cultures were in the back of Alexander the Great’s mind when in 332 B.C. he attacked the Egyptian coast, just outside of modern-day Alexandria. He arrived there after having conquered the island of Tyre (Known in Latin as Tyrus) but the conquest was unexpectedly delayed.
But to his surprise, the siege was so prolonged, the procedure so difficult, and the resistance so fierce he and his army had to come up with a new strategy. Alexander was in a hurry to conquer the world, but his plans were put on hold for seven whole months as the siege of the island of Tyre lasted from January to August 332 B.C.
As Alexander could not attack the island from the sea, he built a kilometre-long causeway, stretching out to the island on a natural land bridge, no more than two meters deep. After a long preparation and a fierce fight he eventually won the battle and out of anger he burned down the entire island. The similarities between the island of Tyre and the isle of Pharos are striking.
Leaving devastation behind he proceeded to gain control over Egypt. After Alexander’s conquest of Egypt, big plans started to be made for the little city of Rhacotis. The city wasn’t called Rhacotis to begin with, it had another ancient Egyptian name but came to be called Rhacotis by the Greeks.
*Racotis in Greek means; "construction in progress" or "building site".
During the planning and preparation for the expansion and improvements of the already existing city and its harbour, the historical accounts tell us about a peculiar incident.
When Dinocrates, Alexander’s architect, traced the layout of the new city, he didn’t have any chalk at hand so he used barley flour instead. No sooner had he finished than a huge flock of birds appeared, darkening the sky and devouring the flour. At first, Alexander thought it was a bad omen, but his seers convinced him that it was a sign that his new city would provide sustenance for the whole known world.
To assume their position as new rulers of Egypt, Alexander and his men needed a city worthy of their status, a spectacular, contemporary and continental city, a city directed to the sea and such a city needed a spacious and safe harbour. Renewing the already existing port by improving the safety and security of its ships wasn’t enough.
Alexander needed a lighthouse but not any lighthouse would do, he wanted a multipurpose structure, one that could assure safety in the port, and enable the new rulers to have proper surveillance of the city, its harbour, and the country as a whole, in the same time as gaining a building to impress the world!
Satellite view of the port.
The idea of constructing a double harbour was motivated by the fact that there are two principal winds and offshore wave directions. Furthermore, the existence of two separate harbours was advantageous as moving ships from one harbour to another would protect the ships from wave disturbances and keep them safe.
Adding to that there were ships arriving from the Nile as well as others coming from the Mediterranean Sea, spearing them would also avoid confusion in the port.
As a connection between the two harbours, they constructed a so-called “Heptastadion” or mole. It was a giant causeway to link Pharos island to the main coast, giving it a name based on its length. Heptastadion is Greek for seven stadia — Hepta means seven, and a station being a Greek unit of length measuring approximately 180 metres. Altogether, it was more than three-quarters of a mile long.
Ships could now be transferred from the west port of Eunostos to the eastern harbour of Portus Magnus, without going to sea, but through canals cutting through the Heptastadion. On top of that bridges were constructed over the canals.
Now, after the construction was completed, the two harbours were connected by canals and separated by a T-shaped peninsula. Yet, after the constructions were completed they still had a lot to do. The port was deep, making it suitable for ships with big drafts, and the haven was well protected from dangerous northern winds by a string of islands.
Still, without a compass or navigational instruments, it was challenging to find one’s bearings by just observing the coastline as the area around the Nile was an endless landscape of marshes and deserts, the land was so low that it sometimes seemed to be hiding behind the sea. Many sailors found that just when they thought the worst part of their journey was over, their ships would become stranded on a stretch of sand.
A final hurdle was the dabble line of reefs in front of Alexandria, which could prove fatal to sailors and incoming ships. If the winds weren’t favourable, some of these reefs were on the surface while others were submerged, thus presenting even more danger for navigation. Clearly, a lighthouse was necessary, especially after the expansion. But not any lighthouse would do.
The tower of Hercules, a miniature version of the Alexandria lighthouse in La Coruña, Spain.
With the construction of the new harbour completed, the attention of Alexander’s men shifted to building the lighthouse. It was anticipated to be a colossal structure, solid, sturdy and able to withstand the tests of time as well as the raging of the sea.
During the construction of the massive monument, the cooperation of experienced and competent Egyptian engineers must have contributed greatly. The construction, ordered by Ptolemy I (one of Alexander’s generals and the first ruler of Greek origin in Egypt) began in 290 B.C. and likely took about twenty years.
Ancient historical accounts are confusing and contradicting when it comes to describing the lighthouse, but if we were to believe Strabo, a Greek geographer, and Pliny the Elder, a Roman historian, they describe it as—
“Covered with magnificent white marble (or as others say white limestone), and was composed of three basic structures: a rectangular base, an octangular midsection and a cylindrical upper section where two beacons were located”.
Inside the structure, there was a sloping shaft built to lift up fuel needed for the fire at the top. A mirror reflected the sunlight during the day while a fire was used at night. Furthermore, there was a system of 72 ramps with the capability of fitting two horses, one going and one coming, simultaneously, thus the ramp system gave access to the entire lighthouse and all its stories.
For people on foot, there was a whole series of spiral stairs throughout the lighthouse and all its levels, where people could access the entirety of the lighthouse.
The interior itself was massive, it is believed that 364 rooms were built in the Pharos measuring from ten to twenty cubit squares.
*Cubit is an ancient measure of length. It was based on the rough distance between the elbow and the middle finger.
The rooms were designed with vents and windows, in order to absorb gusts of wind against the lighthouse, reducing the risk of collapse. Another function of these rooms was as storage for fuel for the beacon. The rooms were covered by beams of teakwood and decorated with arches of stones.
The viewing galleries were situated on the second and third floors, where visitors could enjoy the beautiful scenery and experience a view from around 400 feet, or 122 meters.
But it was not only the harbour and the sea view that was worth seeing from up there, the water supplying canal and its sewers, and the city’s wide spectacular avenues were a rarity in the eastern Mediterranean at the time. The wondrous city was divided into five districts, but nearly a quarter of its extension was occupied by palaces and royal gardens and their enclosures.
Important visitors had the privilege of being lavishly entertained in some of the rooms allocated for this purpose. The Pharos was fitted with every scientific improvement known at the time.
Finally, at the top of the Pharos, two mirrors were perched; they could reflect the light more than 35 miles (56 kilometres) offshore during daytime, thus making it possible to send mirror signals as a way of communicating with ships at sea. And by night it worked with a lit fire.
Conflicting theories exist on how the mirrors were made, some testimonies assure it was made from a highly polished metal whilst others insist it was made of silver-backed glass or transparent stone. Regardless of what the building material was, the lighthouse dominated the harbour for centuries and the impression it left on the visitor must have been immense.
Ibn Jubayr, a traveller writes —
“Descriptions of it fall short, the eyes fail to comprehend it, and words are inadequate, so vast is the spectacle.”
The abundance of rooms, corridors and connecting spaces inside the Pharos never seemed to stop confusing visitors, it was like a maze, a labyrinth that hindered visitors from finding their way without a guide.
The historian Makrizi makes a stunning statement —
“Whoever entered this lighthouse became distracted and lost their way by reason of the number of chambers and stories and corridors which it contained, so when the Arabs arrived in Alexandria with an army, a body of them entered the Pharos on horseback but lost their way, till they came upon a crevice in the crab of glass*, upon which the structure was founded and many of them fell through it, and perished.”
*During the later pharaonic dynasties a special foundation was used in the shape of a ”glass crab”, it was supposed to support a higher buildings or monuments reinforcing their foundation, stabilizing them and distributing the heavy weight.
Finally, the lighthouse also served as a military lookout for approaching enemy ships or any other danger. It is no coincidence that endless legends and myths surround the great Pharos, which was more than only a pleasure for the eyes, as it served a practical purpose too.
Its shining light safely guided ships for centuries and placed the port city in the centre of Mediterranean trade for a very, very long time. It was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world!
The destruction of the Pharos
Nevertheless, the Pharos didn’t withstand the test of time. In spite of its sturdy construction, it was brutally damaged in the earthquakes of 956, 1303 and 1323 C.E. (A.D.).
By 1408, the Pharos was crippled and collapsed into the coastline. From its ruins still holding foundations, the Egyptian fort of Qaitbay was built on the same site, using the same stones left over from the Pharos.
Even though most opinions are unanimous that it was probably the last three earthquakes that caused the destruction of the lighthouse, one man has another theory.
The 10th-century writer Al-Mas’Ud is convinced the Byzantines sent an ancient spy to the Pharos, they convinced him there was a treasure at the bottom of the lighthouse, and while searching for the treasure, the spy sabotaged its foundation ultimately causing the lighthouse to collapse.
No matter the reason, it continued to prosper long after the Greeks, and even outlived many other rulers and civilizations, then finally, it gave in to forces stronger than itself and fell to ruins. The lighthouse had a major impact on Arab minaret architecture and strongly influenced the way they were built.
It is interesting to note that the Arabic word for minaret and lighthouse is the same: Al Minarah.
But the influence didn’t stop there many other languages lent the word for lighthouse from Pharos. ** see end article.
Even though the Pharos is a much-copied veritable wonder it was not always successful in its mission to safeguard ships, as marine archaeologists have discovered over 40 shipwrecks around the ancient harbour. But on the other hand, who can say how many more disasters there would have been without the lighthouse's safe guidance to port?
Losing a light larger than life
Guarding the coast, bathed in blistering sun, and washed by turbulent, salty waters, stood once one of the ancient world’s most impressive structures.
For centuries the Pharos was the sign of ingenuity, raising just a tiny bit short of the great pyramid as another of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Overlooking the Mediterranean’s most turbulent waters it stood for centuries as a saviour for seafarers. It shaped human history. It was the first such building to be constructed and the most famous one.
This indispensable monument of brilliance, the first of its kind in the world, has been a role model for all such buildings, to this day, and for centuries to come.
Rhacotis grew to become Alexandria and later developed further into the Mediterranean bride. But the lighthouse and wonder structure of Pharos that gave us hope and light for centuries, was lost to the sea, forever.
The lost remnants of the lighthouse of Alexandria, the penultimate of the seven wonders of the ancient world, lie underwater near the entrance to the eastern port.
The university of Alexandria using the logo of the Pharo of Alexandria.
**Here are some examples of languages that lent the word Pharos, to showcase the importance of the Pharos. (note that some languages replaced the Greek ph for f).
Norwegian: Fyr (The same word is used in Slavic languages, Bulgarian, Serbian and Russian)
Meanwhile Arabic has its own word
Al-Minarah. Which both means lighthouse and minaret the word derives from the Arabic word Nour: Light
