Ancient Ring Depicting Lost Wonder of the World Found in Cleopatra's Sunken Palace
The bronze artifact, discovered in Alexandria's submerged royal harbor, offers a tangible link to the famed Lighthouse of Alexandria.
Archaeologists have unearthed an ancient bronze ring bearing an image of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, in the submerged royal harbor of Alexandria, Egypt. The discovery was announced this month by the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology.
The ring was found at the site of a royal palace on the submerged island of Antirhodos, an area historically linked to Cleopatra VII, Mark Antony, and Julius Caesar.
This marks the first known signet ring featuring the ancient lighthouse, which was constructed in the 3rd century B.C. and guided ships for centuries before being destroyed by earthquakes, with its final collapse occurring around the 14th century. The age of the ring itself is not precisely determined, but it displays iconography similar to that found on some 2nd-century A.D. coins.
Franck Goddio, president of the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology and leader of the excavation, highlighted the significance of the discovery's location. "The discovery of the ring-signet is even more important as it has been excavated in the legendary palace of the Island of Antirhodos, that once was a center of power," Goddio stated.
Alexandra F. Morris, a lecturer in ancient history at Queen's University Belfast, described the underwater excavation process as painstaking, with all artifacts needing to be located, recorded, and retrieved by divers.
Morris suggested that the palace, potentially used by Cleopatra, may have later served as administrative offices, possibly overseeing operations at the Lighthouse of Alexandria. "This could be a representation of that," she said of the ring.
While the ring's exact age is uncertain, potentially dating to the Ptolemaic or Roman periods, Morris noted that it underscores the lighthouse's importance to ancient Alexandria. "This lighthouse has now been shrunk down to sit on someone's finger and used to sign official paperwork," she explained. "It's basically showing that the lighthouse became the symbol of Alexandria, long after it was built."
Morris also believes the ring could help make Alexandria's underwater history more accessible to the public, serving as an artifact that people can interact with, particularly for touch-based displays for visually impaired visitors or those interested in the site.