Archaeologists have recovered an astonishing 22 stone blocks from the Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Also known as the Lighthouse of Pharos, the lighthouse was completed during the reign of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (280-247 BC) in the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. 

Estimates suggest that the lighthouse once stood at least 328 feet (100 metres) high and was topped by a giant furnace and mirror that could be seen from several miles out at sea. Iconic general and Roman dictator Julius Caesar described the Pharos and its strategic importance in his books Civil Wars Part III, 111-112. Gaining control of the lighthouse helped him subdue Ptolemy XIII’s armies in 48BC, solidifying his control over Egypt, upon which he installed Cleopatra as ruler.

However, the lighthouse was severely damaged by three earthquakes between 956 and 1303 AD and became an abandoned ruin. The large limestone blocks used were robbed in 1480 to build the Citadel of Qaitby, a defensive fortress located on the Mediterranean coast on the eastern side of the northern tip of Pharos Island, also in Alexandria.

Now, many centuries later, archaeologists have raised stone blocks from around the island where the lighthouse once stood, including door lintels, thresholds, base slabs and even a Ptolemaic-era pylon with an elaborately carved door. This was done as part of a recent underwater project known as PHAROS.

Backed by the La Fondation Dassault Systèmes and led by researcher Isabelle Hairy of CNRS, archaeologists are using digital simulations to virtually reconstruct the lighthouse and provide new insights into the construction, structure and eventual collapse. 

According to the foundation, Pharos can be regarded as humanity’s first skyscraper. Its technical brilliance and architectural gains – emblems of the area’s scientific and artistic peak – allow it to withstand time and history for over 1,600 years. 

“This research helps to fill gaps left by the highly fragmented archaeological remains,” it said. 

The lighthouse was the third-longest surviving ancient wonder, after the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the Great Pyramid of Giza, which, of course, remains standing today and is the only Wonder to remain largely intact. The other Ancient Wonders are the Colossus of Rhodes (collapsed 226BC),  the Temple of Artemis (ruined or destroyed by 401 AD), the Statue of Zeus at Olympia (lost or destroyed by the end of 6th century AD) and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon (no definitive archaeological evidence of its existence).