San Venerio Lighthouse ( it, Faro di San Venerio) is an active lighthouse on the island of Tino, in the comune of

Porto Venere Porto Venere (; until 1991 ''Portovenere''; lij, Pòrtivene) is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) located on the Ligurian coast of Italy in the province of La Spezia. It comprises the three villages of Fezzano, Le Grazie and Porto Venere, an ...

in the Province of La Spezia,

Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Its construction began in 1839, and was completed in 1840. It illuminates and guides the sailors in that part of

Ligurian Sea The Ligurian Sea ( it, Mar Ligure; french: Mer Ligurienne; lij, Mâ Ligure) is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea. It lies between the Italian Riviera (Liguria) and the island of Corsica. The sea is thought to have been named after the ancient ...

. It is named for Venerius the Hermit, the patron saint of lighthouse keepers.

History

San Venerio Lighthouse is a fortified neoclassical building, despite having undergone many changes over time. Construction of the lighthouse was granted by King

Charles Albert of Savoy Charles Albert (; 2 October 1798 – 28 July 1849) was the King of Sardinia from 27 April 1831 until 23 March 1849. His name is bound up with the first Italian constitution, the Albertine Statute, and with the First Italian War of Independence ...

and was initially fueled by

vegetable oil Vegetable oils, or vegetable fats, are oils extracted from seeds or from other parts of fruits. Like animal fats, vegetable fats are ''mixtures'' of triglycerides. Soybean oil, grape seed oil, and cocoa butter are examples of seed oils, or f ...

, followed later by coal. In 1884 another tower was built, taller than the original at high, and at the top of the lenses an optical filament was added, electrically powered by two steam engines. This system gave too much power to the beam of light, and in 1912 the fuel was replaced with petroleum. The lighthouse was later electrified, and became fully automated in 1985. The lighthouse is completely controlled and operated by the

Marina Militare "Fatherland and Honour" , patron = , colors = , colors_label = , march = ( is the return of soldiers to their barrack, or sailors to their ship after a ...

based in

La Spezia La Spezia (, or , ; in the local Spezzino dialect) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second largest cit ...

.Faro di San Venerio
Marina Militare In the evening, near

Lerici Lerici ( lij, Lerxi, locally ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of La Spezia in Liguria (northern Italy), part of the Italian Riviera. It is situated on the coast of the Gulf of La Spezia, southeast of La Spezia. It is known as the plac ...

(located on the opposite side of the

Gulf of La Spezia The Gulf of La Spezia (Italian: ''Golfo della Spezia'' or ''Golfo dei poeti'') is a body of water on the north-western coast of Italy and part of the northern Tyrrhenian Sea, specifically of Ligurian Sea. It measures some 4.5 (length) by 3-3.5 ( ...

) or the

Cinque Terre The Cinque Terre (; lij, Çinque Tære, meaning "Five Lands") is a coastal area within Liguria, in the northwest of Italy. It lies in the west of La Spezia Province, and comprises five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarol ...

the light can be seen flashing across the sea in the darkness.

References

External links

Servizio Fari
''Marina Militare'' Lighthouses completed in 1840 Lighthouses in Italy Buildings and structures in Liguria Province of La Spezia {{Italy-struct-stub

History

See also

References

External links