Past & Present: The Lighthouse (colour litho)

The Lighthouse. The Pharos at Alexandria. One of the wonders of the ancient world, this tower, the "father of lighthouses," was built by Sostratus of Cnidus during the 3rd century BC. It is said to have been 600 ft in height, and the light of its blazing wood fire was visible for 27 miles. Apparatus of Modern Lighthouse. The light is usually provided by an incandescent burner, the illuminant being petroleum vapour. Surrounding this is a "hyper-radiant apparatus" some 12 feet in height, which is really an elaborate and carefully designed system of lenses by means of which intermittent beams of great intensity are secured with a comparatively small light. Illustration for one of a set of cigarette cards on the subject of Past & Present issued by Wills in 1929.