The Great Pyramid at Giza is nowadays recognised as the pre-eminent ancient structure in Egypt, but for 16 centuries it was rivalled by another of the Seven Wonders of antiquity: the Pharos lighthouse in Alexandria. According to the Greek writer Achilles Tatius (2nd century AD), it was not merely a lofty lantern, but a second sun that shone over the city, elevated on a pedestal that towered 120 metres above the waves. It completely collapsed after a succession of earthquakes seven centuries ago, so its structure and technology slipped beyond memory, to be superseded by supposition and fantasy. Only now, by combining clues from the few ancient images with eye-witness accounts, and by adopting a scientific perspective, can the Pharos be resurrected in all its ancient glory.
The architect
The Pharos is thought to have been erected between about 297 BC and 284 BC, during the reign of Ptolemy I Soter, although the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus (c.AD 330-400) assigned its construction to Cleopatra VII, who probably just repaired it.
However, an Arab writer, al-Masudi (c.AD 896-956), thought it most likely the work of Alexander the Great, and he has been partially vindicated by a marginal note in a manuscript of the satirist Lucian of Samosata (c.AD 125-180). This clearly attributes the plan for a lighthouse to Alexander, despite the fact that its foundations were not laid until a quarter of a century after his death. Neither does it seem that Ptolemy I either instigated or funded the construction of the Pharos. The ancient sources are unanimous in attributing the entire project, including its architecture and technological aspects of its design to Sostratus of Cnidus, a senior member of Ptolemy’s court.
One person’s trash is another person’s treasure