From a humble crank, to complete automation. In the last 40 years, even the Bàri Lighthouse has undergone a complete transformation that, however, does not seem to question the purpose of this facility, managed since 1911 by the Lighthouse and Maritime Signaling Service of the Italian Navy.

Once upon a time, the mechanical device that operated the lighthouse was called the "Engine Weight Clockwork." 

Every thirteen hours, the lighthouse keeper, by turning a crank, activated a horizontal cylinder on which a metal cable with cast iron disks wound. Exploiting the potential energy of a suspended mass, the rotation of the cylinder was transmitted to rotating optical apparatuses. Why rotating? Because main lighthouses, like this one, need to project the lantern's brightness up to 15 nautical miles, and for this, rotating optics technology is required.

In 1969, the "electromechanical device for rotating the revolving apparatus" came into operation, and it is still in use today. It is an electric engine with a carefully calibrated gearwheel to ensure a stable rotation time. This results in a unique light characteristic that allows sailors, immersed in the darkness of the sea, to orient themselves. Each lantern, therefore, has a luminous signature. Here is that of San Cataldo: 3 flashes of 0.2 seconds, interspersed with a double dark period of 3.8 and then 11.8 seconds.

To check the accuracy of the light signal, a chronometer was necessary, which was indeed one of the key objects in the life of the lighthouse keeper, who lived in these premises with their entire family.

Since 2012, the Sàn Catàldo Lighthouse has been completely automated. Precision is even more guaranteed, but curiously, it still serves an alternating rhythm of flashes and eclipses that seems to have watched over us since the mists of time.