Stella Maris Light
Encyclopedia
Stella Maris Light Mount Carmel Light, Har Carmel Light or Haifa Light, is a lighthouse
in Haifa, Israel. It is located on the seaward face of Mount Carmel
, near Stella Maris Monastery
, inside an Israeli Navy base.
The lighthouse is closed to the public and there is no access to the building. It can be viewed from nearby.
The current location of the lighthouse is at the summer palace of Abdullah Pasha, the ruler of Acre
from 1820 to 1831. The house and lighthouse were built using masonry from the Carmelite monastery that stood there, and was destroyed by order of Abdullah Pasha. In 1831 Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt
captured Acre, exiled Abdullah Pasha to Egypt, and returned the building to the Carmelites.
The structure was badly damaged in the First World War. However, the building was restored in the end of the war and the Carmelites added a second floor in 1926. In 1928, with a donation by the Spanish Honorary Consul, the current lighthouse was built. The original lens, as well as plans for the original structure and catadioptric
apparatus are on display at the facade of Israeli National Maritime Museum
.
In the Second World War the British Army
rented the house from the Carmelites to serve in the preparation to the Nazi invasion to the area. The British remained there until their evacuation at the end of the British Mandate in 1948. The building has been used by the Israeli Navy ever since.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
in Haifa, Israel. It is located on the seaward face of Mount Carmel
Mount Carmel
Mount Carmel ; , Kármēlos; , Kurmul or جبل مار إلياس Jabal Mar Elyas 'Mount Saint Elias') is a coastal mountain range in northern Israel stretching from the Mediterranean Sea towards the southeast. Archaeologists have discovered ancient wine and oil presses at various locations on Mt. Carmel...
, near Stella Maris Monastery
Stella Maris Monastery
The Stella Maris Monastery or Monastery of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Haifa is a 19th-century Carmelite nunnery located on the slopes of Mount Carmel, Israel.- History :...
, inside an Israeli Navy base.
The lighthouse is closed to the public and there is no access to the building. It can be viewed from nearby.
History
Over the years there have been lighthouses in several locations on Mount Carmel. An ancient lighthouse was present on the mountain in roman times. One early mention is a lighthouse located at the original site of the Stella Maris Monastery, as early as 1631.The current location of the lighthouse is at the summer palace of Abdullah Pasha, the ruler of Acre
Acre, Israel
Acre , is a city in the Western Galilee region of northern Israel at the northern extremity of Haifa Bay. Acre is one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites in the country....
from 1820 to 1831. The house and lighthouse were built using masonry from the Carmelite monastery that stood there, and was destroyed by order of Abdullah Pasha. In 1831 Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt
Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt
Ibrahim Pasha was the eldest son of Muhammad Ali, the Wāli and unrecognised Khedive of Egypt and Sudan. He served as a general in the Egyptian army that his father established during his reign, taking his first command of Egyptian forces was when he was merely a teenager...
captured Acre, exiled Abdullah Pasha to Egypt, and returned the building to the Carmelites.
The structure was badly damaged in the First World War. However, the building was restored in the end of the war and the Carmelites added a second floor in 1926. In 1928, with a donation by the Spanish Honorary Consul, the current lighthouse was built. The original lens, as well as plans for the original structure and catadioptric
Catadioptric
A catadioptric optical system is one where refraction and reflection are combined in an optical system, usually via lenses and curved mirrors . Catadioptric combinations are used in focusing systems such as search lights, headlamps, early lighthouse focusing systems, optical telescopes,...
apparatus are on display at the facade of Israeli National Maritime Museum
Israeli National Maritime Museum
The National Maritime Museum in Haifa, Israel was founded in 1953. It is based on the private collection of its founder and first director, Aryeh Ben- Eli....
.
In the Second World War the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
rented the house from the Carmelites to serve in the preparation to the Nazi invasion to the area. The British remained there until their evacuation at the end of the British Mandate in 1948. The building has been used by the Israeli Navy ever since.