Beacon of the Pisans

The “Fanale dei Pisani” (literally Pisans' beacon) is the main lighthouse of the port of Livorno. It is an imposing structure 52 meter tall and, obviously, here is simply called “fanale”. The Repubblica di Pisa, which in the 13th century was interested in the hamlet of Livorno and its harbour, built the tower around 1305 on the south of the entrance to the port. They needed to replace the lighthouse on the Meloria islet, destroyed by the Genoeses in the naval battle of 1284.
Through the centuries bonfires on the top were substituted by an oil lamp, then by a gas lantern and at last by electricity. The six hundred years old tower was demolished by German sappers in 1944. After the war the Fanale has been faithfully rebuilt, mainly out of the original wreckage, coming back in service in 1956.