Pharos Lighthouse of Alexandria, Egypt, realistic detailed matte painting, deep color, fantastical, intricate detail, splash screen, complem...

The second level of the Pharos Lighthouse was, by most accounts, octagonal rather than round. The light itself is usually depicted as having been actual fire, and was probably a lot lighter in color. Lighter because of sun bleaching, if for no other reason, but it's said in some accounts I've seen that it was built of limestone. This was made from a sketch of what the lighthouse might have looked like, based upon written descriptions of it. The Pharos, nearly 400 feet high, stood at the entrance of Alexandria Harbor, where the Ptolemies built their palace and ruled Egypt until the death of Cleopatra VII. Ruins of the lighthouse still lie on the ocean floor around where it once stood. Clues as to its actual structure seem to have survived at Taposiris Magna, where what appears to have been a smaller scale version was constructed. I'm fascinated by this lighthouse, which is odd because I am afraid of water and can't swim.