80-metric-ton fragments of the legendary lighthouse were recovered from the seabed near Alexandria
Off the coast of Alexandria, archaeologists recovered 22 massive stone blocks weighing between 70 and 80 metric tons from the seabed. Researchers believe these fragments may have been part of the Lighthouse of Alexandria—one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
A barge and a powerful crane were used to recover the artifacts. All the blocks will be scanned and incorporated into a digital reconstruction project of the lighthouse, which aims to restore its original appearance and provide a better understanding of the construction techniques used in this legendary structure.
Among the items recovered from the seabed are large lintels, door frames, a threshold, and the slabs on which the structure stood. They also found something previously unseen: an Egyptian-style gate. Scientists believe that all these stones once formed the main entrance to the lighthouse—a place where Egyptian and Greek architectural styles converged. A barge and a powerful crane were needed to retrieve such heavy blocks from the water.
The recovered blocks will now be studied and scanned. Together with these, more than 100 such blocks have already been collected and examined underwater over the past ten years. Each stone is photographed from all angles, and then a computer uses these photos to build a precise 3D model—this allows engineers to “rotate” the stone on the computer without even touching it.
The ruins on the seabed have been known since 1968. In 1995, they were thoroughly examined and cataloged. Even earlier, in 1994, over 3,300 different objects were counted on the seabed—including sphinxes, columns, and granite boulders.
These excavations are part of the large-scale PHAROS project. As noted, researchers involved in the project are also collecting old drawings and texts about the lighthouse—from the time it was first built until the moment it collapsed.
Next, each stone is “fitted” into a computer program, as if assembling a giant jigsaw puzzle—to understand what it actually looked like. The goal is to create a digital replica of the lighthouse that is so accurate that people can take a virtual tour of it as if it were still standing.
History
The lighthouse was built before the Common Era, by order of King Ptolemy I. It stood on the island of Pharos and rose over 100 meters—at the time, it was one of the tallest structures in the world. The Dassault Systèmes Foundation even calls it the first “skyscraper” in human history: for over a thousand years, its light guided sailors to the port.
Earthquakes gradually damaged the lighthouse, and one of the strongest, in 1303, finally destroyed the structure. What remained was dismantled for building materials, and a fortress was later built on the site. As the article notes, the stones that fell into the water survived the best—no one touched them for hundreds of years.
This was reported by the Daily Galaxy.
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