The Lighthouse of Pharos Island (Alexandria)

The Lighthouse of Pharos Island (also known as Alexandria Lighthouse) was built in the Hellenistic era, completed around 280-289 AD. It was located near the city of Alexandria in Egypt, built on the island of Pharos and connected to the mainland by an artificial causeway, called the Heptastadion. The lighthouse was built by order of King Ptolemy I, and its architect was probably Sostratus. However, it cannot be ruled out, that the initiator of the building was Alexander the Great himself! The building of the lighthouse probably lasted about 15-20 years. It is believed, that its height reaches 115-120 meters, making it one of the tallest buildings in antiquity. The building had a square-shaped lower floor, on which the lower part of the octagonal tower was built, on which in turn there was a third and final circular floor, covered with a dome on columns. The whole thing was completed by a statue of Poseidon at the very top of the lighthouse. It is believed, that its light of this lighthouse was visible even 30 nautical miles away! Already in ancient times, the lighthouse was damaged several times by earthquakes, and in the 9th century its lower floor was converted into a mosque. The lighthouse was finally destroyed in 1375 by earthquake, and its ruins were demolished around 1480. It was and is considered one of the seven wonders of the world.

A large, medium-complexity, well-designed and not overloaded model, but due to some errors in the mutual coordination of parts and a lot of very large areas and small (catapult, ballista) parts, it will suit only medium-experienced and experienced modelers. But even they will have something to turn their heads here, and it is recommended not to rush when working, to work carefully and attentively. From my own experience in making this model, there are minor problems with the mutual coordination of towers and walls, but they are easily overcome. There are no reserves of colors and textures. The textual instruction in Polish and English is quite large, detailed and informative, perfectly complementing the not very large graphical instruction, which is informative, easy to read and perfectly illustrate the entire process of assembling the model.