Old eye of the sea
A city symbol.
David Moraes de Andrade — CC BY 3.0 · Dominique Greusard — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Otávio Nogueira from Fortaleza, BR — CC BY 2.0 · Claudio Oliveira Lim… — CC BY-SA 3.0
The old Mucuripe Lighthouse is one of the oldest buildings in Fortaleza. It was built between 1840 and 1846 in masonry, timber and iron by enslaved labourers and for a long time guided ships into the city, earning the nickname «old eye of the sea», until it was switched off in 1957. In 1981–82 it underwent a major restoration to house the «Jangadeiro Museum», later the «Lighthouse Museum», which showed pictures, documents and drawings of colonial Fortaleza and of Ceará under the Empire. The building is listed as national heritage, yet it was neglected until, in 2023, visitors described it as abandoned and falling apart. On 5 October 2025 the lighthouse reopened to the public after months of complete restoration. About two kilometres away stands the new lighthouse, opened in 2017 at 71 metres tall and described as the tallest in the Americas.
A city symbol.
Back in 2025.
71 m nearby.
Avenida Vicente de Castro, Serviluz, Fortaleza
Yes, it reopened to the public in October 2025; check the hours.
