The last of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is the Lighthouse of Alexandria. The legendary monument is commemorated by the Czech Mint that minted a gold coin weighing one-tenth of a troy ounce.

A lighthouse is a tower used to navigate ships in treacherous waters. The French term for lighthouse is “phare“, the Spanish and Italians call it “faro“, the Greeks “faros“ and English poets used the term "pharos". The origin of all these words goes back to ancient Egypt, where the largest lighthouse of all time stood in the city of Alexandria. The seventh wonder of the world stood on an island called Faros, an elongated piece of land that lay close to the mainland and  thus formed a harbour. Two sea lanes, lined with rocks and shoals, led to this ancient centre of trade and education. It was the admirable lighthouse that served to ensure that the sailors reached their destination safely. The multi-storey tower rose to a height of 140 metres and could be seen by ships from a distance of 57 kilometres. Not only because of the dazzling white masonry, but above all because of the fire that was kept up incessantly at the top of the tower. At night, the lighthouse emitted a column of light, while during the day a column of smoke rose from it. The fuel was conveyed to the tower by horse-drawn and hoisted up a spiral ramp, and the glow of the fire was reflected by a large convex mirror. The structure was not only practical but also symbolic. It represented the power and wealth of the Ptolemaic dynasty, but it disappeared without a trace after a thousand years. It succumbed to the ravages of man and the elements - earthquakes and the sand that swallowed the harbour…

The reverse side of the coin, which is the work of the medal maker Petra Brodská, DiS., presents a supposed image of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, accompanied by the English inscription THE LIGHTHOUSE OF ALEXANDRIA. The obverse side, which is common to the entire cycle, then presents all seven wonders of the world - the Egyptian pyramids, the Hanging Gardens of Semiramis, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes and the Lighthouse of Alexandria. As the coins of the Czech Mint are issued with the foreign license of the island of Niue, they also bear its national emblem, the nominal value of 5 DOLLARS (NZD) and the year of issue 2023 on the obverse side.

Each coin is sealed in special packaging.

Note: The packaging is covered with foil to prevent damage during transport.