| Print | More

THE ROMAN PHAROS

ABOUT THIS MONUMENT

+ / -

EH Visitor Information
Related Monuments
Related Text
Investigation History

More Pictures
Modern Map
Old Map
Aerial Photograph

Monument Types
Sources
Thesaurus
Description

DESCRIPTION

+ / -

A Roman lighthouse, one of a pair constructed during the reign of Emperor Claudius in AD 46 on the headland flanking either side of the major Roman port of Dubris. It is one of only three in the world to survive. It is located within Dover Castle and comprises an octagonal, conical, tower approximately 19 metres and four storeys high. The fourth storey was reconstructed between 1426 and 1437 when the lighthouse had been adapted for use as a belfry to the church of St Mary-Sub-Castro. The original design of the top of the lighthouse has been destroyed by these alterations, making its functionality unclear. It is thought that both lighthouses were used during fine weather as sea-marks in guiding vessels into the harbour. At night this role would have augmented by fire-lit braziers situated at the top of the lighthouse. The lighthouse may have also been used as a smoke beacon during certain weather and visibility conditions. Another possible role is as a signal tower. Medieval and later alterations within the immediate locality of the lighthouse have removed any possible evidence of structures associated with the running of the lighthouse. Changes to the lighthouse took place in 1582 when it was converted into a gunpowder magazine.

PICTURES

+ / -

DETAIL

+ / -

MORE INFORMATION & SOURCES

+ / -

TR 3260 4181: The Pharos [NR] (1)

The Roman Pharos on Castle Hill, Dover, is 62 feet high of which the top 19 feet are medieval, square internally on plan and octagonal externally. Originally stepped at each stage, the outside masonry was renewed in the middle ages and battered back in the process. The lighthouse is probably of a fairly early date in the Roman period. (2)

Excavations close to St. Mary-in-Castro Church [TR 34 SW 65] "have revealed evidence of an I.A. settlement (1st century B.C. - 1st century A.D.) and together with the I.A. remains have been found fragments of Roman tiles which it is assumed are connected with the building of the Pharos; this would suggest that the lighthouse was built in the 1st century A.D." (3)

The Pharos is as described and is kept in a good state of repair.
See GP.AO/LP/63/77. (4)

The Roman Pharos, Dover Castle. Grade I. AD 46. Built under the Emperor Claudius. This guided the Roman fleet round to the port of Richborough. In medieval times it was used as a belfry to the Church of St. Mary Sub-Castro. 4 storeys, 3 being Roman and the top storey and remains of battlements medieval. An octagonal tower with originally vertical stepped walls rising in tiers set back each within the last, now almost smoothed. Rubble with a facing of green sandstone and tufa and levelled at an interval of 7 courses with a double course of brick set in hard pink mortar. Round-headed windows with a small recessed spy-hole inside them. (5-13)

Roman lighthouse, one of a pair constructed during the reign of Emperor Claudius in AD 46 on the headland flanking either side of the major Roman port of Dubris to help guide in cross-channel traffic. One lighthouse survives within Dover Castle. It has an octagonal stepped tower approximately 19 metres and 4 storeys in height. The fourth storey was reconstructed during the medieval period by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester between 1415 and 1437 during his tenure as Constable of the Castle, by which time the lighthouse had been adapted for use as a belfry to the church of St Mary-Sub-Castro. Scheduled. (14)

The original design of the top of the lighthouse has been destroyed by the medieval alterations, making it uncertain how the lighthouse functioned. It is thought that the lighthouse, together with its pair situated on the Western Heights were used during fine weather as sea-marks in guiding vessels into the harbour. At night this role would have been by fire lit braziers situated at the top of the lighthouse. The lighthouse may have also been used as a smoke beacon during certain weather and visibility conditions. Another possible role is as a signal tower. Medieval and later alterations within the immediate locality of the lighthouse has removed any possible evidence of structures which may have been associated with the running of the lighthouse. The top of the lighthouse was rebuilt between 1426-37 to provide a belfry for the church of St Mary-Sub-Castro. Changes also took place in 1582 when it was converted into a gunpowder magazine. (15)

One of only three Roman lighthouses to survive in the world, it was described by WIlliam Stukeley in 1722, and Sir Mortimer Wheeler in 1929. A metric survey was undertaken by Kevin Booth in 1999; it examined areas previously inaccessible for study. Evidence for the internal frame of the pharos was identified, and it was concluded that the building's profile was conical, as Stukeley suggested, rather than set back in stages, as Wheeler concluded. This article considers Wheeler's evidence for the relationship of the pharos to the other Roman lighthouses at Dover and Boulogne, now lost. (16)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

25" 1957

( 2) Royal Archaeological Institute The Archaeological Journal

REM Wheeler, 1930 86 Page(s)29-46

( 3) Kent Archaeological Society Archaeologia Cantiana : being contributions to the history and archaeology of Kent

EH Bayly, 1962 77 Page(s)XLVIII

( 4) Field Investigators Comments

F1 ASP 20-MAY-1964

( 5) List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest

District of Dover, Kent: Amendment dated 07-MAR-1974

( 6) by Brian Philp 1981 The excavation of the Roman forts of the Classis Britannica at Dover, 1970-1977

Kent monograph series research reports2 (1973) - B Philp, 1981 3 Page(s)7-9

( 7) Society of Antiquaries of London Archaeologia : or miscellaneous tracts relating to antiquity

W Emerson Peck, 1880 45 Page(s)333-35

( 8) by Douglas B Hague and Rosemary Christie 1975 Lighthouses : their architecture, history and archaeology

( 9) Royal Archaeological Institute The Archaeological Journal

RC Neville and J Hunter, 1856 13 Page(s)98-99

(10) by Stephen Johnson 1976 The Roman forts of the Saxon Shore

S Johnson Page(s)11-12

(11) by John Newman 1983 North east and east Kent

The Buildings of England J Newman Page(s)289-90

(12) A J Haselfoot 1978 The Batsford guide to the industrial archaeology of south-east England : Kent, Surrey, East Sussex, West Sussex

Page(s)37

(13) edited by Charles Roach Smith Collectanea Antiqua: etchings and notices of ancient remains, illustrative of the habits, customs and history of past ages

1857 4 Page(s)214

(14) Scheduled Monument Notification

14-DEC-1999

(15) Jonathan Coad 1995 English Heritage book of Dover Castle and the defences of Dover

Page(s)15-17, 51, 55

(16) English Heritage Historical Review

'The Roman Pharos at Dover Castle', article by Kevin Booth 2, 2007 Page(s)8-21

RELATED MONUMENTS

+ / -

Monument Name/No

Resources

Description

DOVER CASTLE
DOVER

Monument Pictures
Monument Maps
Monument Investigation
Monument Sources
EH Visitor Information

Dover Castle probably originated as a motte and bailey castle, built after the Norman Conquest of 1066. Its unusual outline may be due to the reuse of...

CHURCH OF ST MARY IN CASTRO
DOVER

Monument Pictures
Monument Maps
Monument Investigation
Monument Sources
EH Visitor Information

Late Saxon Church situated within the defences of Dover Castle. A minster was founded at St Mary in Castro by 640 but in 696 was transferred to St Mar...

MONUMENT TYPES

+ / -

COMMENTS

+ / -

Please help us keep our information accurate let us know if you see any errors on this page.

Further information about monuments may be obtained by contacting NMR Enquiry and Research Services , through the English Heritage website.

EH Archives
EH Prints
English Heritage
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Gateway
Images of England
National Heritage List for England
English Heritage Archive
ViewFinder