__NOTOC__ Sõrve Lighthouse (

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

: ''Sõrve tuletorn'') is a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

located in

Saaremaa Parish Saaremaa Parish, also known as Saaremaa Municipality (), is a municipality in Saare County in western Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland a ...

, on the island of

Saaremaa Saaremaa (; ) is the largest and most populous island in Estonia. Measuring , its population is 31,435 (as of January 2020). The main island of the West Estonian archipelago (Moonsund archipelago), it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hi ...

, in

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

. The current lighthouse is a cylindrical

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

tower, which was built to replace a temporary wooden structure lighthouse that served as a signal point between 1945 and 1960.

History

The first lighthouse on the

Sõrve Peninsula Sõrve is a village in Harku Parish, Harju County in northern Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the B ...

was built in 1646. The original structure of the lighthouse was wooden; however, the structure was replaced with stone in 1650, and designed by Heinrich Stegeling. The lighthouse was under private possession until 1737, when it was managed by the state. The

rectangular In Euclidean plane geometry, a rectangle is a rectilinear convex polygon or a quadrilateral with four right angles. It can also be defined as: an equiangular quadrilateral, since equiangular means that all of its angles are equal (360°/4 = 90 ...

structure of the lighthouse was reconstructed in 1770, and built higher in 1807. Another reconstruction occurred in 1863, when the lighthouse (at a height of 35 metres) was fitted with

catoptric Catoptrics (from ''katoptrikós'', "specular", from ''katoptron'' "mirror") deals with the phenomena of reflected light and image-forming optical systems using mirrors. A catoptric system is also called a ''catopter'' (''catoptre''). Histor ...

apparatus. The lighthouse had survived

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, however its wooden interior was damaged by fire. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the whole structure was destroyed in the year of 1944. The temporary wooden octagonal structure was built in 1949, and was used up until 1960, when it was replaced by the current reinforced

lighthouse.

References

External links

* Lighthouses completed in 1960 Resort architecture in Estonia Lighthouses in Estonia Saaremaa Parish Buildings and structures in Saaremaa Tourist attractions in Saare County 1646 establishments in Sweden {{Europe-lighthouse-stub