Lighthouse of Alexandria

The Lighthouse of Alexandria (or the Pharos of Alexandria, Greek: ὁ Φάρος τῆς Ἀλεξανδρείας) was a tower built in the 3rd century BC (between 285 and 247 BC) on the island of Pharos in Alexandria, Egypt, to serve as that port’s landmark, and later, its lighthouse.
With a height variously estimated at between 115 and 135 m (380 and 440 ft) it was identified as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World by Antipater of Sidon. It may have been the world’s third tallest building after the two Great Pyramids (of Khufu and Khafra) for its entire life

History:

Pharos was a small island just off the coast of Alexandria. It was linked to the mainland by a man-made connection named the Heptastadion, which thus formed one side of the city’s harbor. As the Egyptian coast is very flat and lacking in the kind of landmark used at the time for navigation[clarification needed], a marker of some sort at the mouth of the harbour was deemed necessary — a function the Pharos was initially designed to serve. Use of the building as a lighthouse, with a fire and reflective mirrors at the top, is thought to date to around the 1st century AD, during the Roman period. Prior to that time the Pharos served solely as a landmark or day beacon.

Construction and destruction:

The lighthouse was completed in the 3rd century BC, after having been initiated by Satrap (governor) Ptolemy I Soter, Egypt’s first Macedonian ruler and a general of Alexander the Great. After Alexander died unexpectedly at age 32, Ptolemy Soter announced himself king in 305 BC, and ordered its construction shortly thereafter. The building was finished during his son Ptolemy Philadelphos’s reign.
According to legend, Ptolemy forbade Sostratus to put his name on his work. But the architect left the following inscription on the base’s walls nonetheless:

“Sostratus, the son of Dexiphanes, the Cnidian, dedicated (or erected) this to the Saviour gods, on behalf of those who sail the seas”; the original Greek inscription “ΣΟΣΤΡΑΤΟΣ ΔΕΞΙΦΑΝΟΥ ΚΝΙΔΙΟΣ ΘΕΟΙΣ ΣΩΤΕΡΣΙΝ ΥΠΕΡ ΤΩΝ ΠΛΩΙΖΟΜΕΝΩΝ” literally means: “Sostratos of Dexiphanes [meaning: son of Dexiphanes] the Cnidian to Saviour Gods for the seafarers (or seafaring [ones])”