Biography Faros Lighthouse

He owes the presence of the second name to his location - the island of Faros, located off the coast of the city of Alexandria, which is spread out in Egypt. In turn, Alexandria got its name because of the name of the conqueror of the ancient Egyptian lands-Alexander the Great. He approached the choice of a place for the construction of a new city quite carefully.

At first glance, it may seem strange that the area of ​​the settlement was determined by the Macedonian 20 miles from the south of the Nile Delta. If he arranged it in the delta, the city would be at the intersection of two water roads important for that area. These roads were the sea and the Nile River. But the fact that Alexandria was based south of the delta had a significant justification - in this place, river waters could not clog the harbor with sand and silt harmful to her.

On the city under construction, Alexander Macedonian had high hopes. His plans included turning the city into a solid shopping center, because he successfully placed it at the intersection of ground, river and sea routes of several continents. But the city so significant for the country's economy needed a harbor. It was necessary to put up to live many complex engineering and construction solutions for its arrangement.

An important necessity was the construction of a dam that could connect the sea coast with Faros, and a mala that protects the harbor from sand and silt. Thus, Alexandria received two harbors at once. One harbor was supposed to receive trading ships that sailed from the Mediterranean Sea, and the other - vessels that came along the Nile River. Alexander of Macedon about reincarnating a simple city into a prosperous shopping center came true after his death, when Ptolemy I Soter turned out to be in power.

It was under him that Alexandria became the richest port city, but her harbor was dangerous for navigators. Since both shipping and marine trade continuously developed, the need for the lighthouse felt more and more acutely. The tasks for this construction were assigned to - protect the swimming of ships in coastal waters. And such care would lead to an increase in sales, since all trade was carried out through the port.

But because of the monotonous landscape, the sailors needed an additional landmark, and they would be quite alarmed by a signal fire, illuminating the place of entrance to the harbor. According to historians, Alexander of Macedon also assigned other hopes for the construction of the lighthouse - to provide the city with security from the attacks of the Ptolemes, who could attack the sea.

Therefore, to detect enemies that could be at a considerable distance from the shore, an invasive point of impressive size was needed. Naturally, a lot of resources were required to build such a solid structure: financial, labor and intellectual. But it was not easy to find them at that troubled time for Alexandria. But still, an economically favorable environment for the construction of the lighthouse was due to the fact that Ptolemy, who conquered Syria in the title of the king, brought countless Jews to his country and made them slaves.

So the lack of labor resources necessary for the construction of the lighthouse was replenished. No less important historical events then were the signing by Ptolemy Soter and Demetrius with a polyorctic agreement on the world year BC. The construction of the lighthouse began in the year BC. Wanting to perpetuate his name in history, a compassionate on the marble wall of the beacon was carved by the inscription, indicating that he builds this design for the sake of sailors.

Then he hid her under a layer of plaster, and on it he already glorified King Ptolemy. However, fate pleased that humanity recognized the name of the master - gradually the plaster fell off and revealed the secret of the great engineer. The Faros structure intended for illuminating the harbor had three tiers, the first of which was represented by a square with sides of 30.5 m each.

All four faces of the lower square tier were addressed to all sides of the world. In height, he reached 60 m, and its corners decorated the statues of tritons. The purpose of this premises was the placement of workers and guards, as well as the arrangement of pantries for storage of supplies and fuel reserves. The average tier of the Alexandrian lighthouse was built in the form of an octagon, the faces of which were guided by the directions of the winds.

The upper part of this tier was decorated with statues, and some of them were weathercocks. The third tier, made in the form of a cylinder, was a lantern. It was surrounded by 8 columns and covered them with a dome-cone. And at his top, the 7-meter statue of Isis-Faria was hoisted, which was considered a trustee of navigators, some sources claim that it was a sculpture of Poseidon-the king of the seas.

Due to the complexity of the system of metal mirrors, the light of fire lit at the top of the lighthouse intensified, and the guards were observed by the sea space. As for the fuel necessary to maintain the flame of the lighthouse, it was delivered along a spiral ramp in carts drawn by mules. To facilitate delivery between the mainland and Faros, a dam was built.If the workers did not do this, the fuel would have to be transported by boats.

Subsequently, the dam, washed by the sea, became a isthmus, which currently shares the western and eastern harbor. The Alexandrian lighthouse was not only a lamp - it was still a fortified fortress that protects the sea route to the city. Due to the presence of a large military garrison in the lighthouse building, an underground part necessary for drinking water reserves was also provided.

To strengthen safety, the entire structure was surrounded by powerful walls with guard towers and loopholes. In general, the three -tier tower of the lighthouse reached a height up to M and was considered the highest design in the world. Those travelers who saw such an unusual structure subsequently enthusiastically described the unusual statues that served as the decoration of the lighthouse tower.

One sculpture showed a hand in the sun, but lowered it down only when it went beyond the horizon, the other served for hours and annually reported the current time. And the third sculpture helped recognize the direction of the wind. Having stood almost a thousand years, the lighthouse of Alexandria nevertheless began to collapse. It happened in the year n. Only ruins remained from the huge meter building of the lighthouse, but they also reached a height of about 30 m.

Somewhat later, the fragments of the lighthouse were useful for the construction of a military fort, which was repeatedly rebuilt. So the Faros lighthouse turned into Fort Kite Bey-he received this name in honor of the Sultan, who built it. Inside the fort is a historical museum, in one of its parts there is a museum of marine biology, and an aquariums of the Museum of Hydrobiology are located opposite the fort building.