Stone blocks from the Lighthouse of Alexandria recovered from seafloor

Summary

After centuries underwater, 22 huge stone blocks of the ancient Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, have been recovered from the Mediterranean seabed, a breakthrough in an ambitious digital reconstruction effort.Stone blocks recovered from the sea at the site of the Lighthouse of Alexandria. Credit: GEDEON Programmes / CEAlexRestoration is part of the ongoing “PHAROS” project, led by archaeologist and architect Isabelle Hairy of France’s National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), along with Egypt’s Centre d’Études Alexandrines (CEAlex) under the authority of Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. Supported by the Fondation Dassault Systèmes, the project aims to virtually reassemble the structure using advanced technology.Among the recently excavated finds are the massive lintels and uprights of the monumental entrance to the lighthouse, its threshold stones, foundation paving slabs, and fragmentary remains of a previously unrecorded pylon. The doorway of the pylon intriguingly blends Egyptian stylistic elements with Greek construction techniques, evidencing the multicultural diversity of Hellenistic Alexandria.One of the monumental doorway blocks of the Lighthouse of Alexandria being raised from the seabed. Credit: GEDEON Programmes / CEAlexEach of these blocks, weighing up to 80 tons, will be scanned using detailed photogrammetry and then passed on to volunteer engineers from the Dassault Systèmes Foundation. These specialists will digitally analyze and virtually reposition the blocks as if the fragments were pieces of a vast archaeological puzzle. Their efforts will ultimately result in a virtual twin of the Lighthouse of Alexandria so that researchers and the public will be able to view it in its original glory and understand why it collapsed.One of the monumental doorway blocks of the Lighthouse of Alexandria being raised from the seabed. Credit: GEDEON Programmes / CEAlexThe Lighthouse, or Pharos of Alexandria, wa...