Bronze Seal Ring Bearing Image of Lost Pharos Lighthouse Raised From Alexandria Harbor

ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT — Underwater archaeologists working in the Eastern Harbor of Alexandria have recovered a bronze seal ring engraved with the likeness of the fabled Lighthouse of Alexandria, according to an announcement by Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

The ring was found at Antirhodos, a sunken royal island that once formed part of the harbor district known as Portus Magnus. Divers also brought up pottery, tableware, oil lamps and glassware. The Pharos has previously been identified on Roman coins of the second century A.D., but officials say this is the first time it has appeared on a seal ring. Hisham El-Leithy, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, called the discovery "exceptional."

The engraving's artistic style matches depictions from the second century A.D. Ministry experts therefore believe the find shows that activity at the palace continued long after the Greek geographer Strabo described it during his travels in Egypt between 29 and 25 B.C. The site, they suggest, likely remained an administrative hub well into the Roman period.

Seal rings served in antiquity as personal or legal signatures, pressed into wax or soft clay to secure letters, validate documents or close jars of wine and olive oil. The European Institute for Underwater Archaeology, which led the joint mission, suggests the owner may have been a high-ranking harbor official, perhaps concerned with maritime communications or with the management of the lighthouse itself.

The Pharos, built in the 3rd century B.C., is described as the world's first authentic lighthouse and stood for more than 1,600 years. A team led by Jean-Yves Empereur found its scattered remains on the seabed in 1994, and divers are now mapping more than 3,000 fragments. Excavations in the earthquake-sunken waterfront continue.