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Mikhail Polyakov

A signet ring with the Lighthouse of Alexandria was found underwater off Alexandria: what is established about the find and what is still a guess

Level: BeginnerReading time: 5 min

Topics: History, Culture

A darkened bronze ring with an oval bezel engraved with the silhouette of a tall tower with a flame at its top lies on the seabed among sand and fragments of ancient masonry, with light rays from above

Short answer: according to Live Science, a bronze signet ring with an image of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the wonders of the ancient world, has been found underwater off the coast of Alexandria in Egypt. It was found by a joint team from the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology (IEASM) and the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in the remains of a palace on the now-submerged island of Antirhodos. According to the team, it is the first signet ring with an image of the lighthouse ever found. Independent scholars Live Science spoke with agree that the ring probably shows the lighthouse. The bolder suppositions, for example about smoke above the lamp, about the palace having been used for administrative functions connected with the lighthouse, and about a merchant as the owner, remain suppositions. Below is what is established, what specialists say and how to read news about finds like this.

What was found

All the facts below come from the Live Science article by Owen Jarus.

  • Where and who. Underwater off Alexandria, in the remains of a palace on the island of Antirhodos, which is now submerged. The find was made by the IEASM team and the Egyptian ministry.
  • What the object is. A bronze signet ring. A ring like this was worn and used to make an impression in a soft material, such as clay or wax, to produce a seal.
  • What is depicted. The lighthouse. According to IEASM representatives, the image is similar to images of the lighthouse found on coins from the second century.
  • Why it matters. IEASM president Franck Goddio said in a statement that the find is even more important because it was excavated in the "legendary palace" of the island of Antirhodos, which, in his words, was once a center of power.

Some background from the same article. The palace was used by Egyptian rulers of the Ptolemaic period, 304 to 30 B.C. The lighthouse was built on the island of Pharos around 280 B.C. and stood more than 328 feet, about 100 meters, tall. Pliny the Elder and other ancient writers considered it one of the wonders of the world, and it remained in use into the Middle Ages, until earthquakes and erosion destroyed it and it ended up under the sea. At the top there was possibly a statue, possibly of Zeus, with an oil lamp that helped sailors.

What independent scholars say

Live Science asked specialists who were not part of the excavation team.

  • Doris Behrens-Abouseif (professor emeritus at the University of London, has written about the lighthouse): the engraving is worn, but it probably depicts the lighthouse. She noted that "thousands of coins" from Alexandria with a similar depiction are known, from the Ptolemaic or Roman period. Whether this is the only ring with such an image, she did not venture to judge: she does not know enough about Alexandrian rings.
  • Other scholars also believe it is the lighthouse, and two noted that the ring may show smoke from the lamp at the top.
  • Andrew Chugg (an independent researcher, author of a book about the lighthouse): the most interesting detail is an asymmetrical feature at the top, which may depict a plume of smoke from the oil lamp in the hand of the crowning statue.
  • Margaret Miles (professor emerita at the University of California, Irvine) also noticed the possible smoke. In her view, the ring could have been used by an Alexandrian merchant who chose the silhouette of the lighthouse as a sign of his place in the city: the lighthouse was famous and became a symbol of Alexandria.

What is established and what is not

This is my own sorting of the article.

  • Stated by the excavation team: the ring was found in the palace on Antirhodos; it is the first signet ring with the lighthouse that has been found; the find in the palace possibly means that the palace was used for administrative functions connected with the lighthouse. IEASM representatives word the last point as "suggests."
  • Opinion of independent specialists: the ring probably shows the lighthouse; possible smoke above the lamp; a possible merchant owner. These are opinions, not established facts.
  • Unknown: whether this was the only such ring (Behrens-Abouseif did not venture to judge), and who it belonged to.

How to read news about finds

These are my tips, not a conclusion from the article.

  1. Look at who is speaking. A statement by the excavation team and the opinion of an independent scholar are not the same thing: in this news both sides are present, and they show where the fact is and where the interpretation is.
    • How to check: find in the text who is the author of each claim and whether they took part in the excavation.
  2. Tell "found" from "means." "The ring was found in the palace" is an observation; "the palace was used for administrative functions connected with the lighthouse" is a conclusion.
    • How to check: look for the words "suggests," "probably," "possibly." A guess stands behind them.
  3. Watch for the word "first." "The first in the world" needs checking; here it is the team's statement, and an independent specialist directly said she cannot judge it.
    • How to check: is there independent confirmation or only the authors' statement.

What else is known about the lighthouse

According to the same article, research off the coast of Alexandria in recent years, including the discovery of 22 massive blocks, has revealed more about what the lighthouse looked like and helps researchers who are trying to recreate it as a digital model.

When this does not concern you

If the history of the ancient world means nothing to you, the find hardly touches everyday life. The rules for reading news in the last section suit news about science and about business too: look at who is speaking and what they claim, and what they only suppose.

Summary

Underwater off Alexandria, in the remains of a palace on the island of Antirhodos, a bronze signet ring with an image of the Lighthouse of Alexandria has been found. The excavation team calls it the first of its kind, independent specialists agree that it probably shows the lighthouse, and the rest remains supposition: the version about smoke above the lamp, the excavation team's version that the palace was used for administrative functions connected with the lighthouse, and the version about a merchant as the owner.

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