- Start
- Jan 1, 280 BC50% CONFIDENCEfrom the source
Ptolemy II Completes the Lighthouse of Alexandria
- The Pharos lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was commissioned by Ptolemy I Soter around 300 BCE (Wikipedia: after he declared himself king in 305 BC) and completed by Ptolemy II[2][3]
- Wikipedia dates construction to between 284 and 246 BC in Ptolemy II's reign, taking twelve years and costing 800 talents of silver; World History Encyclopedia says c. 300-280 BCE[2][3]
- Ancient sources credit the architect Sostratus of Cnidus, though he may have been only the financial backer[2][3]
- It stood over 100 metres tall (103 to 118 m per Wikipedia) with square, octagonal and round tiers and a statue of Zeus Soter or Poseidon on top[2][3]
- It stood over 1,600 years, damaged by three earthquakes between AD 956 and 1303, with the last stones used for the Citadel of Qaitbay in 1480[2][3]
References 367% CONFIDENCE
The first entry is always the pin's source. Overall confidence is a weighted average of how firmly each reference supports the start and end times used above; a reference counts half as much for every 180 days older than the newest.
- [1]50%youtube.com/watch?v=v7xOE2HT33Ayoutube.com· Posted Sep 15, 2026· Starts Jan 1, 280 BC ✓· 33% of score
Ancient sources place completion under Ptolemy II around 280 BCE, per the World History[3] Encyclopedia and Britannica; the exact year is not precisely recorded.
- [2]70%Lighthouse of Alexandriaen.wikipedia.org· Added Sep 15, 2026· 33% of score
Corroborates the c. 280 BCE completion date under Ptolemy II.[1]
- [3]80%Lighthouse of Alexandria - World History Encyclopediaworldhistory.org· Added Sep 15, 2026· 33% of score
States the Pharos was finished during the reign of Ptolemy II, around 280 BCE.[1]
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