Lighthouse
The most celebrated of antiquity was the one erected by
Ptolemy Soter in the island of Pharos, opposite Alexandria. Josephus
says it could be seen at the distance of 42 miles. It was one of the
“seven wonders” of the ancient world.
Of modern lighthouses the most famous are the Eddystone, 14
miles S.W. of Plymouth Sound; the Tour de Corduan, at the entrance of
the Gironde, in France; and the Bell Rock, which is opposite the Frith
of Tay.
The largest lighthouses
are:
(1) The lighthouse at Hell Gate in New York, 250 feet high,
with 9 electric lamps of 6,000 candle-power each.
(2) The Bartholdi
Statue of Liberty, in New York harbour, 220 feet high.
(3) One in Genoa, Italy, 210 feet in height.
(4) Cape Hatteras
Light, which is 189 feet high.
(5) Eddystone Lighthouse is 85 feet
high, and lights a radius of 17 miles.
Source: Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, E. Cobham Brewer, 1894 More on Lighthouse from Infoplease:
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