Location | L'Agulhas, Western Cape, South Africa |
---|---|
Coordinates | 34°49′46″S 20°00′32″E / 34.829389°S 20.008911°E |
Tower | |
Constructed | 1848 (first lit 1849) |
Construction | sandstone tower |
Height | 27 m (89 ft) |
Shape | cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern rising from one-story keeper's house |
Markings | red tower with a white band, white lantern |
Power source | mains electricity |
Operator | South African National Parks[1] |
Heritage | Historic Civil Engineering Landmark |
Light | |
First lit | 1 March 1849 |
Deactivated | 1968–1988 |
Focal height | 31 m (102 ft) |
Lens | 1st order Fresnel |
Intensity | 7,500,000 cd |
Range | 30 nmi (56 km; 35 mi) |
Characteristic | Fl W 5s |
The Cape Agulhas Lighthouse is at Cape Agulhas, the southernmost tip of Africa. At 171 years old, it is the third-built lighthouse in South Africa, and the second-oldest still operating, after Green Point.[2] It is located on the southern edge of the village of L'Agulhas, in the Agulhas National Park; the light is operated by Transnet National Ports Authority. In 2016, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) identified the lighthouse as a deserving prominent historic engineering project and International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.