The famous Lighthouse of Alexandria was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It stood on an island and guided ships into Alexandria’s harbour. It was constructed around 200 B.C, and lasted over 1500 years before it collapsed after an earthquake in the 14th century.
Now, 22 blocks of the ancient lighthouse have been recovered from the ocean floor, including pieces from a huge doorway.
French and Egyptian archaeologists plan to scan the recovered blocks and attempt to digitally reconstruct the lighthouse. Based on historical records, over a hundred blocks have already been digitized.
The ancient structure was over a hundred metres high, one of the tallest objects of the ancient world. The beam of light to guide ships was produced by a fire made of wood. It could be seen from up to 50 km away.
3D reconstruction of the Lighthouse of Alexandria
Image: SciVi 3D studio, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Words
- ancient = old
- archaeologist = a person who studies old buildings and structures and what is left of them
- attempt = try
- based on = using; as a basis
- beam of light = line of light
- B.C. = before the birth of Christ
- century = a period of a hundred years
- collapse = break down
- construct = build
- digitize = to put information into a digital form; so that a computer can use it
- earthquake = a sudden shaking of the Earth’s surface; it causes a lot of damage and can kill many people
- guide = here: to help something move to a place
- harbour = a place where ships stay to load and unload goods
- huge = very big
- reconstruct = rebuild
- record = information that has been written down over the ages
- recover = to get back something that was damaged or destroyed
- scan = here : to make a computer picture
- structure = building