Inaugurated on 18 November 1872, the Olinda Lighthouse is the second oldest in Pernambuco. At that time, situated in the Fort of São Francisco de Olinda, it had a forged iron tower, measured 12.5 metres in height, and its light was visible for 12 nautical miles.
From the beginning of the 19th century, there was a call for the construction of a second lighthouse in the state, taking into account that Olinda Point and Santo Agostinho Cape – the most prominent points of the bar – needed signals.
It was also argued that the Recife Lighthouse needed to be repaired because it had only a fixed light, did not guarantee sufficient lighting for the safety of the port, and that the new lighthouses needed to have a patterned light.
However, due to the ongoing argument that there was little maritime traffic in the locality, the Olinda Lighthouse was not able to be built previously. So it was only in 1867 that its architectural plans could be authorised. Even so, it would receive a 4th or 5th order light lens.
Despite the fact that the Olinda Lighthouse was in ruins and constantly threatened by the advance of the sea, it was kept in the same place until the mid-20th century. However, in the 1940s, Ponta de Olinda (at the top of Serapião Hill) was chosen to house the new lighthouse.
The current Olinda Lighthouse was inaugurated on 7 September 1941. It has a 42-metre high reinforced concrete tower and is painted with white and black horizontal stripes.
In order to facilitate access to the lantern, a small elevator was installed in the lighthouse – the first one installed in a lighthouse in Brazil – with the capacity to transport only one person at a time to the top.
Recife, 22 March 2004.
(Updated on 5 May 2008).
Translated by Peter Leamy, October 2016.
sources consulted
SIQUEIRA, Ricardo. Luzes do novo mundo; história dos faróis brasileiros. Fotos Ricardo Siqueira, texto de Ney Dantas. Rio de Janeiro, 2002.
how to quote this text
Source: VAINSENCHER, Semira Adler. Farol de Olinda . Pesquisa Escolar Online, Fundação Joaquim Nabuco, Recife. Disponível em: <http://basilio.fundaj.gov.br/pesquisaescolar/>. Acesso em: dia mês ano. Ex: 6 ago. 2009.