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Massive Blocks From the Lighthouse of Alexandria, an Ancient Wonder, Hauled up From the Mediterranean

ALEXANDRIA GOVERNORATE, EGYPT, JUL 7 – The 22 blocks, each weighing up to 80 tons, will be 3D scanned to aid a virtual reconstruction led by French archaeologists and engineers under the PHAROS project.

  • A French-led team of researchers recovered 22 enormous stone blocks underwater near Alexandria’s harbor that once belonged to the ancient Lighthouse of Alexandria in Egypt.
  • The recovery is part of the PHAROS Project, initiated decades after the lighthouse remains were first discovered underwater in 1994 to digitally reconstruct the monument.
  • The lighthouse was built around 280 B.C. under Pharaoh Ptolemy II Philadelphus, stood over 100 meters tall, and served to guide ships safely into Alexandria’s busy port and warn of treacherous coasts.
  • The team identified blocks weighing up to 80 tons, including parts of the lighthouse’s base and a massive Egyptian-style gateway, while a virtual model will allow testing how it was built and why it collapsed.
  • Earthquakes in the 14th century, especially the 1303 tremor, reduced the lighthouse to rubble, making these recoveries vital to understanding an ancient wonder lost to history.
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Lean Right

A Franco-Egyptian archaeological team, under the direction of Isabelle Hairy of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), recovered 22 monumental pieces of the Alexandria Lighthouse in the Mediterranean Sea, in the eastern port of Alexandria, Egypt. These architectural elements were part of the monumental entrance, among which there are lintels, jambs, pavement slabs and thresholds, with weights around 70 and 80 thousand kilos. Th…

·Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Lean Left

It is the relics of an ancient wonder of the world: archaeologists have transported 22 foundation blocks of the Lighthouse of Alexandria from the sea. With the gigantic puzzle pieces they have great plans.

·Germany
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Lean Left

French and Egyptian researchers have lifted 22 huge stones, weighing up to 80 tons, from the Mediterranean Sea in the process of digitally reconstructing the Lighthouse of Alexandria in Egypt.

Lean Right

A team of experts recovered 22 huge stone blocks from the ancient lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, from the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea.

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Archaeology & Arts broke the news in on Monday, July 7, 2025.
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