Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1911-05-03
THE PHARos OF ALEXANDRIA.

Several centuries before Christ the
number had been a peculiarly Savorite
one. Asamemnon sought TO ccnciIiate
Achilles with gifts of seven tripods
seven towns and seven women. The
cannon of the Seven Wonders has been
handed down 10 us. practically unre-
Vised, as an unaduterated product OF
the Hellenistic third century 3. G. The
seven sages of Greece. Thales of Mile
tus, Pittacus Of Mytlene, Bias of Pri-
enc. Scion Of Athens. Cleobulus of
Rhodes. Myson Of Chen and Chiffon OF
Sparta, were all living in the first halt
Of the sixth century b. c.
We have no indication of the exist
ence Of cycle of seven wonders until
about the end Of the second century
b. &. Then appears. in an epigram OF
Antipater of Sidon. an enumeration OF
seven great works. which prove 10 be
very large ones. later appearing as the
Seven Wonders.
An approximate date for the first
formulation of the cycle is offered by
the brief career of the famous Colossus
Of Rhodes, which. after standing less
than sixty years in its place by the
ha5or of Rhodes. was overthrow by
the earthquake Of 227 3. c.
It.is to be noted in the vulgate list
that only one Of the wonders is located
in Europe, while two are in Egypt and
the others in Asia Minor
Usually the first named Of these
great marvels of antiquity is the Pha-
ros of Alexandria. Pharos is a rocky
islet off the coast of Egypt During the
reign Of Alexa4ier the Great that
monarch connected Pharos with Alex
andria by the Heptastadium, or Seven
Furlonged Mole. Navigation through
this mole was exceedingly dangerous.
and consequently he erected the famous
lighthouse, which is usually named as
the first although by no means the
most marvellous of the Seven Won
ders
Pharo and Faro are the French and
Italian names for Lighthouse. This
AleXandrian structure was sometimes
knwn as Ptolemy's tower 1t was not
only unique and a marvel in its aspect.
but, unlike the other Of the wonders.
it served a useful purpose
The idea OF a lighthouse was. no
doubt suggested to the monarch as a
development out Of the beacon fires.
which in remOter antiquity were often
kept burning at the entrance to a har-
Dor to guide belated ship. In Homer's
time, we are informed, the mariner
overtaken by the night, was glad TO
steer his craft by any chance watch
fire cleaning on the shore.
In .sTlfaIfs Howe. ssn.
when, DER the sea, there cOmeth to me
the sailors eyes. the CLEAN of burning
fire. There it is, burning on high
among the mountains in some lonely
camp, while they, against their VIII.
are being carried by the storm blasts
DER the sea, the home of fishes. far
from them they love"
1t was in the second decade of the
third century B. c. that PtOlemy Softer.
famous general, then king
Of Egypt, began the construction Of the
great Pharos tower. and il was not
until about 2S2 3. c.. under
his successor, PtOlemy Philadelphius.
The architect was Sostratus Of Cnidus
and. as the story goes, ne carved his
name. as the builder. deep upon its
9lbiltSf lItii IL ONGI ana set
the kings name in the more transient
This story may not be true. but fu-
ture ages read upon the stone i'm plain
"SOstratus of Cnidus to
the rescuing gods. i'm behalf of those
who sail the seas" The story of its
size. which has been told both i'm an
tiquity and about the middle ages, by
the Arabs, pass the bounds of the cred
ible Each of its four sides are said to
have measured at the base about $40
feet. 1t was built of white stone. i'm
many stories, each narrowing toward
the top. Its upper story had large open
ings toward the sea, through which the
light of the great pitch wood wires
cleaned out upon the treacherous ap-
prOach TO the harbOr
Josephus claims the light could be
seen thirty miles out at sea. and that
the tower was at least 500 feet high has
been asserted by at least two reliable
authors. Its construction is said to have
cost well over $1,000,00O The exact spot
where the lighthouse stood can no
longer be determined. The structure
remained standing down to the four
tenth century, and for sixteen centu-
ries it had guided to land the wander