The Lighthouse Commission chose on November 30, 1861, to build a third-order lighthouse on the Gorlebella rock. Victor Fénoux was engineer in chief from 1879 to 1885. Masonry work began on August 5, 1882, and the light was first lit on September 15, 1887.
The tower is a squat, tapered square with a semi-cylindrical north face. The lower floors are rusticated grey granite from the Île de Sein, and the upper sections and corners use blue kersantite. The tower is 89 feet (27 meters) tall, its light sits 108 feet (33 meters) above the sea, and its range is 18 nautical miles. It has 120 steps.
It was automated on November 14, 1995, and is now solar powered and remotely controlled. It is a registered historic monument.
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