Phare des Îles Lavezzi, Maritime lighthouse in Lavezzi Islands, Bonifacio, France
Phare des Îles Lavezzi is a red cylindrical tower with a white top section, capped by a red lantern room and railing, rising from a square white building with a flat roof. Large dark red letters spelling "LAVEZZI" are painted on the white facade below a row of slanted solar panels. The structure rests on a stone base surrounded by large, pale grey boulders.
The lighthouse was erected in 1874 on Capu di u Beccu, at the southern end of Lavezzo island, by the Lighthouse Service, completing Corsica's second illumination programme. Its construction followed the sinking of the Sémillante on 15 February 1855, when the troopship bound for Crimea struck the nearby islet known as "k". The first tower, rectangular and attached to a keeper's house, was replaced in 1911 by the present structure.
The lighthouse appears in Willy Rozier's 1953 film Manina, la fille sans voiles, with Brigitte Bardot as the keeper's daughter. In 2019 La Poste issued a twelve-stamp booklet "Repères de nos côtes" featuring the tower. Inside, the Bouches de Bonifacio nature reserve has created a botanical garden reproducing the islands' vegetation, with over 240 species, 40 of them protected, rare or endemic.
The lighthouse is best viewed from the water during a boat tour, though it can also be seen from higher ground on the islands. The surrounding terrain consists of sharp rocks, so sturdy footwear and careful walking are necessary.
The lighthouse stands on the island of Lavezzo, where the 1855 wreck of the Sémillante, a troopship bound for Crimea, killed hundreds and prompted the lighting of these waters. In 2019 La Poste issued a booklet of twelve permanent stamps titled "Repères de nos côtes" that includes the Lavezzi lighthouse.
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