Pharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater
Pharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater North Annex · Pharos Site
Bronze Age to Classical (2000 BCE–300 CE)·Bronze Age–Classical·🇪🇬 Alexandria, Egypt
About
About Pharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater
Pharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater in Alexandria, Egypt is a Bronze Age to Classical (2000 BCE–300 CE) submerged city attributed to Bronze Age–Classical. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal submerged area 450 × 280 m and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 31.2030N 29.8940E controls access to Alexandria resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey submerged city for Alexandria, illustrating Bronze Age–Classical construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction episodes
- 02Function in regional settlement hierarchy
Theories
- 01Harbour drowned by co-seismic subsidence vs eustatic rise
- 02Continuity of anchorage location
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 1500 BCE–200 CE
- Period
- Bronze Age to Classical (2000 BCE–300 CE)
- Culture
- Bronze Age–Classical
- Purpose
- Coastal settlement and harbour now submerged by sea-level change/subsidence
- Rediscovered
- 1966 survey
- Excavation
- Submerged
c. 1500 BCE–200 CE
Initial construction of Pharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater main structure
c. 1946
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically
1961–2006
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Pharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
31.2030° N · 29.8940° E · -8 m · 4 mapped features
Pharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater — Main Structure
structurePrincipal submerged city — Submerged area 450 × 280 m with diagnostic masonry/panel
31.2038° N · 29.8949° EPharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater — Ancillary Complex
harbourAncillary harbour mole and anchorage surrounding main feature
31.2020° N · 29.8933° EPharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater — Peripheral Feature
outlierPeripheral feature with outlier deposit and burial
31.2045° N · 29.8952° EPharos Eastern Harbour Submerged Breakwater — Hydraulic/Cistern
hydraulicHydraulic feature — cistern/reservoir or rock-cut channel associated with site
31.2014° N · 29.8929° E