Dubh Artach Lighthouse
| Dubh Artach Lighthouse | ||
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| Place: | Dubh Artach | |
| Location: | Argyll and Bute , Scotland , United Kingdom | |
| Geographical location: | 56 ° 7 '59.3 " N , 6 ° 37' 57.8" W | |
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| Construction time: | 1867-1872 | |
| Operating time: | since 1872 | |
The Dubh Artach Lighthouse , also Dhu Heartach Lighthouse , German Dubh Artach lighthouse , is a lighthouse on the small Scottish rock island Dubh Artach . The roughly 70 m long and 40 m wide basalt rock belongs to the Torran Rocks archipelago in the area of the islands of Tiree , Mull , Colonsay and Islay . In 1971 the lighthouse was listed in the Scottish List of Monuments in the highest category A.
history
Due to the numerous ship accidents in the later area of the Dhub Artach Lighthouse, the need to close the lighthouse chain in this area was expressed. The Rhinns of Islay Lighthouse , completed in 1825, is about 50 km to the south, and the Skerryvore Lighthouse , which has been in operation since 1844, is about 35 km to the northwest. After a total of 24 ships were lost in the relevant marine region during a storm from December 30th to 31st, 1865, numerous requests for this were received by the Northern Lighthouse Board responsible . Since the small rocks of the Torran Rocks protruding from the water are not only the only islands in this area, but also pose a great danger to shipping, it was finally decided in October 1866 to build a lighthouse on Dubh Artach. The engineers were the famous lighthouse builders Thomas Stevenson and David Stevenson , who had already gained experience with lighthouse construction on small rock islands when building the Skerryvore lighthouse.
In 1867, the building preparations began. A jetty was built on the tidal island of Erraid , around 20 km to the north , from which all the required material was to be shipped to Dubh Artach. To check the accuracy of fit of the required hewn stones, the individual rows of stones of the tower were put together and the stones were later transported individually again. In order to provide living space for the workers, a ship was anchored near the rock until suitable accommodation was ready. The construction of the tinny quarters resting on a steel structure fixed to the rock was finally completed in September 1868. By this time, around three quarters of the parallel excavation for the 1.5 m deep foundation of the lighthouse had already been excavated. In the following year, construction could be advanced between March 25th and October 29th with a strength of 25 workers when the first five rows of walls were completed. Adverse weather conditions limited construction activities in 1870, so that the tower had only grown to around 17 m by the end of the construction season. In November of the following year, the masonry work was finally completed at a height of about 31 m. The interior work followed in 1872. The lantern was also installed. On November 1st of that year the Dubh Artach lighthouse was put into operation. The total cost to build was around £ 84,000. In 1971 the lighthouse was finally converted to automatic operation and has been monitored from Glasgow ever since .
description
The lighthouse stands on a six-meter-high elevation, from which, with the tower height of 38 m, results in a total height of 44 m above sea level. At the base it measures about 12 m and tapers gradually up to a diameter of about five meters. The original planning provided for a fully solid construction method up to the 13th row of stones. However, this was carried out later until the 21st. The entrance door was moved from a height of about seven meters above the ground to over ten meters. A total of seven rooms were set up inside. While the outer wall consists of hewn granite, sandstone was used inside . The center of the gray tower is painted with a single, wide red band.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Listed Building - Entry . In: Historic Scotland .
- ↑ a b c Information from the Northern Lighthouse Board
Web links
- Entry on Dubh Artach Lighthouse in Canmore, Historic Environment Scotland database