Portopí Lighthouse
Also known as: Faro de Portopí, Far de Portopí, Porto Pi Lighthouse
Portopí is documented as a navigational light by 1300, but the current host is the separate Torre del Senyal. The archive preserves continuity without claiming one unchanged tower or uninterrupted operation.
Approved text-only public record. Media rights remain governed separately.
No public image is available for this record.
Map
At a glance
Place
- Country
- Spain
- Region
- Mallorca
- Locality
- Palma, Mallorca, Spain
- Water area
- Not recorded
- Coordinate source
- Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears
Identity
- LUX ID
- LUX-LH-000988
- Review status
- approved
- Object kind
- Lighthouse
- Mobility
- fixed
Structure
- Status
- operational
- Construction date
- Not recorded
- Tower height
- 38 m
- Tower form
- Not recorded
- Material
- Not recorded
- Daymark / colour scheme
- Not recorded
- Focal height
- 41 m
- Light height
- Not recorded
Signal
- Light characteristic
- Fl(2) W 15s
- Light intensity
- Not recorded
- Light range
- 18 NM (nominal)
- Light number
- Not recorded
- Operation
- Not recorded
- Legacy light IDs
- Not recorded
- Call sign
- Not recorded
- Lens / optics
- Not curated
Position
- Latitude
- 39.54857
- Longitude
- 2.62352
Light Signature
No accepted light signature claims yet.
Signal pattern, color, period, visibility, optics, and operating context appear here after field-level review.
Light signature JSON will appear here after review.
Names & naming history
- Faro de Portopí
- Far de Portopí
- Porto Pi Lighthouse
Heritage identity & evidence
Identity
- LUX ID
LUX-LH-000988- Type
- Lighthouse
- Object kind
- Lighthouse
- Current status
- operational
Review & coverage
External identifiers
No reviewed external identifiers yet.
Key source-backed claims
- Coordinates latitude: 39.54857, longitude: 2.62352 · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears high
- Operational status operational · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 2026 · high
- Current light characteristic Fl(2) W 15s · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 1927 · high
- Current nominal range 18 NM (nominal) · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 2026 · high
Claim evidence
Operational status
Selected value: operational
Show source history
- operational · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 2026 · high
Current tower height
Recorded values: 38 m
Show source history
- 38 m · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 2026 · high
Light elevation
Recorded values: 41 m
Show source history
- 41 m · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 2026 · high
Current light characteristic
Recorded values: Fl(2) W 15s
Show source history
- Fl(2) W 15s · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 1927 · high
Current nominal range
Recorded values: 18 NM (nominal)
Show source history
- 18 NM (nominal) · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears 2026 · high
Coordinates
Selected value: latitude: 39.54857, longitude: 2.62352
Show source history
- latitude: 39.54857, longitude: 2.62352 · Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears high
Key sources
7 active / 7 total in-archive source links. Full sources below
External Identity Graph
- LUX Light ArchiveLUX-LH-000988 Canonical LUX ID
Local identity anchor for the record and related claims.
- Source URLs7 active / 7 total in-record source links Record source URLs
record provenance · Record-level source URLs are listed in the source provenance section.
View by year
Reconstructed state
No reviewed year-by-year state profile yet.
State profile JSON will appear here after review.
History and connections
Lifecycle summary
Current status: operational
Related places and objects
No reviewed continuity links yet.
Evidence and data
Coverage: curated-relations
Open timeline JSON · Open graph JSON · Open map history JSON
Lighthouse history (0 events)
No timeline events yet.
Connection graph (0 objects)
No graph rows yet.
Geo timeline (1 points)
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- Portopí Lighthouse39.54857, 2.62352
LUX evidence-first page
A lighthouse that changed towers
Portopí is documented as a navigational light by 1300, but the current host is the separate Torre del Senyal. The archive preserves continuity without claiming one unchanged tower or uninterrupted operation.
- Current signal: Fl(2) W 15s, nominal range 18 nautical miles.
- Identity: the navigational function moved from Torre del Faro to Torre del Senyal.
- Living heritage: operational aid, protected tower, archive and exhibition coexist.
Current status
Operational light
APB lists the current aid as Fl(2) W 15s with an 18 nm nominal range.
Physical host
The active light is carried by Torre del Senyal, not by the medieval Torre del Faro.
Heritage scope
The 1983 decree designates Torre del Senyal specifically; the archive and exhibition are separately modeled.
Timeline
- Probable origins
Specialist reconstruction places the first lighthouse's origins before 1300, but the exact construction date remains unknown.
- Earliest located documentation
A codicil attributed to Jaume II refers to the light; this is documentary evidence, not a construction date.
- Medieval interruption
The light is reported to have ceased when the tower and lantern had become ruinous.
- Restoration order
Pere IV ordered restoration of the lighthouse service and its oil supply.
- Navigation function changes tower
Works and transfer are recorded across two dates; the distinction remains explicit.
- Responsibility changes institutions
The Colegio de Mercadería, Real Erario and Real Consulado appear as distinct, time-bounded administrations rather than aliases of one operator.
- Successive optical systems
Edel, reflector, fifth-order and Sautter phases are separate equipment states.
- Extinction and disputed relighting
The light was extinguished in 1972; sources differ on whether it returned in 1974 or 1977.
- Protection applies to Torre del Senyal
The legal designation protects the Signal Tower specifically, not every entity in the complex.
- Systematic equipment conservation
The institutional heritage record dates systematic recovery and conservation activity from 1994.
- Permanent Exhibition in its current form
The exhibition adds public interpretation while remaining separate from the operational light and archive.
- Archive supports doctoral research
A UIB research record documents scholarly use of the historical maritime-signals archive.
- World Marine Aids to Navigation Day
Portopí hosted public heritage activity connected with the international navigation-aids day.
- IALA candidature, not award
Portopí was nominated for the 2026 award; IALA identifies Evangelistas as the recipient.
- Operational living heritage
The active signal, protected tower, historical archive and permanent exhibition coexist as related but distinct entities.
Evidence
Verified facts
| Statement | Evidence | Confidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| A lighthouse at Portopí is documented by 1300. | Official and specialist histories cite Jaume II's codicil; the original document still needs direct archival inspection. | high | Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears, Rafael Sánchez Terry — El Faro Medieval de Portopí (Mallorca) |
| Torre del Faro and Torre del Senyal are distinct physical structures. | The APB guide and specialist history describe the transfer between them. | high | Exposición de Señales Marítimas del Faro de Portopí, Rafael Sánchez Terry — El Faro Medieval de Portopí (Mallorca) |
| The current signal is operational. | APB publishes its current coordinates, characteristic, range, elevation and tower height. | high | Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears |
Contested chronology
| Statement | Evidence | Confidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| The transfer sequence is dated 1613 and 1617 in different accounts. | One source records completion and relighting in 1613; the official guide explains a delay to 1617. | medium | Rafael Sánchez Terry — El Faro Medieval de Portopí (Mallorca), Exposición de Señales Marítimas del Faro de Portopí |
| Relighting after the 1972 extinction is dated 1974 or 1 April 1977. | Both source-specific dates are retained as alternatives pending primary records. | medium | Rafael Sánchez Terry — El Faro Medieval de Portopí (Mallorca), Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balears |
Identity Recovery
Remaining questions
- Inspect the original 1300 Jaume II codicil
- Resolve 1613 versus 1617
- Determine the physical fate of the first Torre del Faro
- Resolve 1974 versus 1 April 1977 relighting
- Resolve 1859 versus 1893 fuel change
- Reconstruct the 1847-1927 optical succession
- Verify the full current AtoN configuration
- Document archive fonds, catalogue and access
- Build keeper and institutional succession records
- Verify the current BIC registry topology
Sources
- Faro de Portopí — Fars de Balearsofficial_operator · APB technical and historical record: coordinates, 18 nm nominal range, 41 m elevation, two flashes every 15 seconds, 38 m tower, 1617 transfer narrative, 1918 electrification, 1927 catoptric optic, 1972 extinction and 1 April 1977 relighting.
- Portopí Lighthouse — IALA Heritageinternational_navigation_heritage · IALA reproduces APB's 2025 nomination dossier for the 2026 award, identifies APB as operator, distinguishes the original position from the Signal Tower, and describes the archive, exhibition and conservation activity.
- Evangelistas Lighthouse — IALA Heritage Lighthouse of the Year 2026international_navigation_heritage · IALA identifies Evangelistas Lighthouse as the 2026 award recipient; Portopí therefore remains a candidature, not an award winner.
- Real Decreto 2656/1983 — Torre del Senyalprimary_legal_source · Article 1 declares the Torre del Senyal at Porto Pi a national historic-artistic monument. It does not designate the abstract lighthouse identity, former Torre del Faro, archive or exhibition.
- Rafael Sánchez Terry — El Faro Medieval de Portopí (Mallorca)specialist_monograph · Specialist history supporting the 1300 documentary reference, medieval interruption and restoration, distinct towers, 1613 completion/re-lighting account, optical succession, 1918 electrification, 1927 system, 1974 relighting account and the printed impossible date 31 April 1901.
- Exposición de Señales Marítimas del Faro de Portopíofficial_operator_publication · APB bilingual guide distinguishes the first tower from the Signal Tower, says work began in 1613 and the light transfer was delayed until 1617, and records the 2004 exhibition concept.
- Francisco Javier Pérez de Arévalo López — research using the Portopí maritime-signals archiveuniversity_research_record · UIB research record demonstrates scholarly use of Portopí's historical maritime-signals archive.
Source Evidence
- Faro de Portopí — Fars de BalearsAPB technical and historical record: coordinates, 18 nm nominal range, 41 m elevation, two flashes every 15 seconds, 38 m tower, 1617 transfer narrative, 1918 electrification, 1927 catoptric optic, 1972 extinction and 1 April 1977 relighting.
- Portopí Lighthouse — IALA HeritageIALA reproduces APB's 2025 nomination dossier for the 2026 award, identifies APB as operator, distinguishes the original position from the Signal Tower, and describes the archive, exhibition and conservation activity.
- Evangelistas Lighthouse — IALA Heritage Lighthouse of the Year 2026IALA identifies Evangelistas Lighthouse as the 2026 award recipient; Portopí therefore remains a candidature, not an award winner.
- Real Decreto 2656/1983 — Torre del SenyalArticle 1 declares the Torre del Senyal at Porto Pi a national historic-artistic monument. It does not designate the abstract lighthouse identity, former Torre del Faro, archive or exhibition.
- Rafael Sánchez Terry — El Faro Medieval de Portopí (Mallorca)Specialist history supporting the 1300 documentary reference, medieval interruption and restoration, distinct towers, 1613 completion/re-lighting account, optical succession, 1918 electrification, 1927 system, 1974 relighting account and the printed impossible date 31 April 1901.
- Exposición de Señales Marítimas del Faro de PortopíAPB bilingual guide distinguishes the first tower from the Signal Tower, says work began in 1613 and the light transfer was delayed until 1617, and records the 2004 exhibition concept.
- Francisco Javier Pérez de Arévalo López — research using the Portopí maritime-signals archiveUIB research record demonstrates scholarly use of Portopí's historical maritime-signals archive.