Eierland Lighthouse
Encyclopedia
The Eierland Lighthouse is a lighthouse
on the northernmost tip of the Dutch
island of Texel
. It is named for a former island. The lighthouse was designed by Quirinus Harder
and construction began on 25 July 1863. The lighthouse was built on top of a 20-metre high sand dune, and was lit on 1 November 1864. At that time, the distance from the lighthouse to the sea was 3 kilometres.
Initially the lighthouse had a kerosene
lamp. The current (electrical) lamp is a 2000 watt Philips fluorescent lamp
, producing 2.85 million candela
, and the light is focused with a number of Fresnel lens
es. It has two automatically engaged spare lamps.
The lighthouse was originally red, but in the course of time that colour faded to pink. In 1977 the tower was covered with a red plastic coating. Since 1982 the lighthouse is a Rijksmonument
.
During the Georgian Uprising of Texel
of April 1945 the lighthouse suffered heavy damage. It was repaired by constructing a new wall around it and a new upper-level construction. In this process the lighthouse lost two of its original nine storeys.
During the 1990s the lighthouse, including the very top and the lamp, was open for visitors. Closed for a while, it was reopened in 2009 and is accessible up to the sixth floor.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
on the northernmost tip of the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
island of Texel
Texel
Texel is a municipality and an island in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the biggest and most populated of the Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea, and also the westernmost of this archipelago, which extends to Denmark...
. It is named for a former island. The lighthouse was designed by Quirinus Harder
Quirinus Harder
Quirinus Harder was a Dutch architect best known for having designed a large number of lighthouses. He worked as a structural engineer for the Loodswezen, the Dutch organization overseeing all maritime pilots...
and construction began on 25 July 1863. The lighthouse was built on top of a 20-metre high sand dune, and was lit on 1 November 1864. At that time, the distance from the lighthouse to the sea was 3 kilometres.
Initially the lighthouse had a kerosene
Kerosene
Kerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
lamp. The current (electrical) lamp is a 2000 watt Philips fluorescent lamp
Fluorescent lamp
A fluorescent lamp or fluorescent tube is a gas-discharge lamp that uses electricity to excite mercury vapor. The excited mercury atoms produce short-wave ultraviolet light that then causes a phosphor to fluoresce, producing visible light. A fluorescent lamp converts electrical power into useful...
, producing 2.85 million 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...
, and the light is focused with a number of Fresnel lens
Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens is a type of lens originally developed by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel for lighthouses.The design allows the construction of lenses of large aperture and short focal length without the mass and volume of material that would be required by a lens of conventional design...
es. It has two automatically engaged spare lamps.
The lighthouse was originally red, but in the course of time that colour faded to pink. In 1977 the tower was covered with a red plastic coating. Since 1982 the lighthouse is a Rijksmonument
Rijksmonument
A rijksmonument is a National Heritage Site of the Netherlands, listed by the agency Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed acting for the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.-History and criteria:...
.
During the Georgian Uprising of Texel
Georgian Uprising of Texel
The Georgian Uprising on Texel was an insurrection by the 882nd Infantry Battalion Königin Tamara of the Georgian Legion of the German Army stationed on the German occupied Dutch island of Texel . The battalion was made up of 800 Georgians and 400 Germans, with mainly German officers...
of April 1945 the lighthouse suffered heavy damage. It was repaired by constructing a new wall around it and a new upper-level construction. In this process the lighthouse lost two of its original nine storeys.
During the 1990s the lighthouse, including the very top and the lamp, was open for visitors. Closed for a while, it was reopened in 2009 and is accessible up to the sixth floor.