Falsterbo Lighthouse
Encyclopedia
Falsterbo Lighthouse lies on the place of the oldest known beacon in Scandinavia
. To the northeast of the lighthouse is the city of Skanör-Falsterbo
, to the southeast of the lighthouse is some of the finest sandy beach in Sweden
and surrounding the lighthouse is the golf course
of the Falsterbo Golf Club.
. The beacon was placed at the then outermost point. When the trading became less important (16th century) there were periods without any beacon at Falsterbo. This caused a great loss of ships of the coast of Falsterbo.
In the 1630s the open fires were replaced by a lever light. An iron basket full of burning coal was hoisted up and down by a balanced bar. Hence the light was moving and easier to detect. The coal fire was intensely red and could not be mistaken for a star or ship lantern. The rests of the beacon are still visible as a small hillock of ashes and coal, "Coal Hill" . Towards the end of the 18th century the lever light was moved to the site of the present lighthouse, closer to the new shoreline.
The lighthouse was built in 1793-96 and the "light" was a coal fire at the top. In 1842-43 the uppermost crenellated parts were replaced with the present lantern. Coal was replaced with oil. The oil was very inflammable and the lighthouse keepers had to watch the lamp all night. To make a periodic light; a screen was moved around the lantern by heavy plummets. Around 1850 a house for the keeper was built next to the lighthouse. At the end of the 19th century another house was built for the assistants to the lighthouse keeper.
Also when the oil was replaced with parraffine and, later, gas, the screen still had to be moved around. When electric light was installed in 1935 the screen was removed and so was a major part of the staff. Only one lighthouse keeper remained. In 1972 the lighthouse was automatised and the last keeper retired.
The lighthouse is 25 metres (82 ft) high and 12 metres (39.4 ft) broad. Nowadays it has no importance as a navigation mark and therefore the light is not very strong (ca. 4000 candela
). It was totally turned off 1990-93. The interval of the light is intermittent: 4 seconds on, 1 second off etc.
s in Sweden still manned. Every three hours weather data (wind, temperature, air pressure, visibility, cloud cover etc.) are reported to the Swedish Meteorological Institute
. In earlier days the weather observations were carried out by the lighthouse keepers.
The lighthouse garden is the ringing site of the Falsterbo Bird Observatory. Falsterbo is a premier site in Europe
to watch autumn bird migration. Several millions of birds pass every autumn on route to wintering areas in Africa
or southern Europe. Annually, about 25,000 small birds are trapped and ringed.
Every year on last Sunday of August it is "Lighthouse Day". Then the lighthouse is open to the public. Visitors are shown not only the lighthouse itself but also bird ringing and the weather station.
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
. To the northeast of the lighthouse is the city of Skanör-Falsterbo
Skanör-Falsterbo
Skanör med Falsterbo is a statistical locality , situated in Vellinge Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 6,861 inhabitants in 2005...
, to the southeast of the lighthouse is some of the finest sandy beach in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and surrounding the lighthouse is the golf course
Golf course
A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...
of the Falsterbo Golf Club.
History
The sea route past the Falsterbo Headland has always been dangerous, because of the moving sand banks hidden in the sea. The first beacon was lit by German monks already in the 13th century. By that time Falsterbo was an important trading centre in DenmarkDenmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. The beacon was placed at the then outermost point. When the trading became less important (16th century) there were periods without any beacon at Falsterbo. This caused a great loss of ships of the coast of Falsterbo.
In the 1630s the open fires were replaced by a lever light. An iron basket full of burning coal was hoisted up and down by a balanced bar. Hence the light was moving and easier to detect. The coal fire was intensely red and could not be mistaken for a star or ship lantern. The rests of the beacon are still visible as a small hillock of ashes and coal, "Coal Hill" . Towards the end of the 18th century the lever light was moved to the site of the present lighthouse, closer to the new shoreline.
The lighthouse was built in 1793-96 and the "light" was a coal fire at the top. In 1842-43 the uppermost crenellated parts were replaced with the present lantern. Coal was replaced with oil. The oil was very inflammable and the lighthouse keepers had to watch the lamp all night. To make a periodic light; a screen was moved around the lantern by heavy plummets. Around 1850 a house for the keeper was built next to the lighthouse. At the end of the 19th century another house was built for the assistants to the lighthouse keeper.
Also when the oil was replaced with parraffine and, later, gas, the screen still had to be moved around. When electric light was installed in 1935 the screen was removed and so was a major part of the staff. Only one lighthouse keeper remained. In 1972 the lighthouse was automatised and the last keeper retired.
The lighthouse is 25 metres (82 ft) high and 12 metres (39.4 ft) broad. Nowadays it has no importance as a navigation mark and therefore the light is not very strong (ca. 4000 candela
Candela
The candela is the SI base unit of luminous intensity; that is, power emitted by a light source in a particular direction, weighted by the luminosity function . A common candle emits light with a luminous intensity of roughly one candela...
). It was totally turned off 1990-93. The interval of the light is intermittent: 4 seconds on, 1 second off etc.
Present Activities
Even though the lighthouse is managing itself nowadays, there are still lots of activities around it. Falsterbo is one of twenty synoptic weather stationWeather station
A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for observing atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include temperature, barometric pressure, humidity, wind speed, wind...
s in Sweden still manned. Every three hours weather data (wind, temperature, air pressure, visibility, cloud cover etc.) are reported to the Swedish Meteorological Institute
SMHI
SMHI is an abbreviation for Sveriges Meteorologiska och Hydrologiska Institut, . SMHI is a government agency in Sweden and operates under the Ministry of Sustainable Development...
. In earlier days the weather observations were carried out by the lighthouse keepers.
The lighthouse garden is the ringing site of the Falsterbo Bird Observatory. Falsterbo is a premier site in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to watch autumn bird migration. Several millions of birds pass every autumn on route to wintering areas in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
or southern Europe. Annually, about 25,000 small birds are trapped and ringed.
Every year on last Sunday of August it is "Lighthouse Day". Then the lighthouse is open to the public. Visitors are shown not only the lighthouse itself but also bird ringing and the weather station.