Obelisks had a prominent role in the architecture and religion of ancient Egypt.[1] This list contains all known remaining ancient Egyptian obelisks.[2] [3] The list does not include modern or pre-modern pseudo-Egyptian obelisks, such as the numerous Egyptian-style obelisks commissioned by Roman Emperors. The list also excludes approximately 40 known obelisk fragments, catalogued by Hiroyuki Nagase and Shoji Okamoto.
Only about 30 such obelisks are still in existence worldwide; figures vary between sources with different definitions of extant Egyptian obelisks. For example, David Allen states there are 29 such obelisks, with more in Italy than in Egypt. Only two known obelisks date prior to the New Kingdom, both of which were dedicated to the Middle Kingdom Pharaoh Senusret I. At least 22 of the known obelisks date to the New Kingdom, four date to the Late Period and one to the Ptolemaic period.
The international transportation of Egyptian obelisks dates to the Roman conquest of Egypt following the death of Cleopatra, and in modern times as Egyptian "gifts" to other major cities such as the Luxor Obelisk at the Place de la Concorde in Paris, and the Cleopatra's Needles on the Victoria Embankment and in Central Park in London and New York City respectively.[4] Only five obelisks still stand at the ruins of Ancient Egyptian temples.[5]
The largest known obelisk, the unfinished obelisk, was never erected and was discovered in its original quarry. It is nearly one-third larger than the largest ancient Egyptian obelisk ever erected (the Lateran Obelisk in Rome); if finished it would have measured around [6] and would have weighed nearly 1090t, a weight equal to about 200 African elephants.[7]
The most recent ancient obelisk to be re-erected is the 17-metre-tall Ramses II obelisk in Tahrir Square, the main city square of Cairo, having been reassembled from eight blocks discovered at Tanis in the late 19th century. Dr Khaled El-Anany, Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, said, "When we go to European capitals like Rome or Paris or London, and also Washington, we see that they use Egyptian obelisks in decorating their major tourist squares, so why do we not do the same?"[8]
| Name | Image | Height (with base) | Pharaoh | Original location | Current location | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Reign | Place (since) | City | Sovereign state | ||||||
| Unfinished obelisk | 41.75 m | Hatshepsut | 1479 – 1458 BC | Aswan (in situ) | Egypt | |||||
| Lateran Obelisk | 32.18 m (45.70 m with base) | Thutmose III / Thutmose IV | 1479 – 1425 BC / 1401 – 1391 BC | Karnak | Italy | |||||
| Karnak obelisks of Hatshepsut | 29.56 m | Hatshepsut | 1479 – 1458 BC | Karnak (in situ) | Egypt | |||||
| Vatican obelisk | 25.5 m (41 m with base) | Unknown | Unknown | Alexandria | St. Peter's Square | Vatican City | Vatican City | |||
| Luxor obelisks | 25.03 m and 22.83 m | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Luxor Temple | Luxor Temple (in situ) | Egypt | ||||
| Place de la Concorde (1833) | Paris | France | ||||||||
| Flaminio Obelisk | 24 m (36.5 m with base) | Seti I / Ramesses II | 1294–1279 BC / 1279–1213 BC | Heliopolis | Italy | |||||
| Obelisk of Montecitorio | 21.79 m (33.97 m with base) | Psamtik II | 595–589 BC | Heliopolis | Italy | |||||
| Karnak obelisk of Thutmosis I | 21.20 m | Thutmose I | 1506–1493 BC | Karnak (in situ) | Egypt | |||||
| Cleopatra's Needles | 21.00 m | Thutmose III | 1479 – 1425 BC | Heliopolis (via Alexandria) | Victoria Embankment (1878) | London | United Kingdom | |||
| Central Park (1881) | New York City | United States | ||||||||
| Al-Masalla obelisk | 20.40 m | Senusret I | 1971–1926 BC | Heliopolis (in situ) | Egypt | |||||
| Obelisk of Theodosius | 18.54 m (25.6 m with base) | Thutmose III | 1479 – 1425 BC | Karnak | Turkey | |||||
| Tahrir obelisk | 17 m | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Tanis | Tahrir Square (2020) | Egypt | [9] [10] | |||
| Cairo Airport obelisk | 16.97 m | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Tanis | Cairo International Airport (1984) | Egypt | [11] | |||
| Pantheon obelisk | 14.52 m (26.34 m with base) | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Heliopolis | Italy | |||||
| Gezira obelisk | 13.5 m (20.4 m with base) | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Tanis | Gezira Island, Cairo | Egypt | [12] | |||
| Abgig obelisk | 12.70 m | Senusret I | 1971–1926 BC | Faiyum (local area, found fallen) | Abgig | Egypt | [13] | |||
| Philae obelisk | 6.70 m | Ptolemy IX | 116–107 BC | Philae (Temple of Isis) | Kingston Lacy (1815) | United Kingdom | ||||
| Boboli Obelisk | 6.34 m | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Heliopolis (via Rome) | Boboli Gardens (1790) | Italy | ||||
| Elephant and Obelisk | 5.47 m (12.69 m with base) | Apries | 589–570 BC | Sais | Piazza della Minerva (Roman period, rediscovered 1665) | Italy | ||||
| Abu Simbel obelisks | 3.13 m | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Abu Simbel (Great Temple) | Nubian Museum | Egypt | [14] | |||
| Urbino obelisk | 3.00 m | Apries | 589–570 BC | Sais (via Rome) | Italy | |||||
| Poznań obelisk | 3.00 m | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Athribis (via Berlin, 1895) | Poznań Archaeological Museum (2002) | Poland | [15] [16] [17] | |||
| Matteiano obelisk | 2.68 m (12.23 m with base) | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Heliopolis | Italy | |||||
| Durham obelisk | 2.15 m | Amenhotep II | 1427–1401 BC | unknown (within the Thebaid) | Oriental Museum, University of Durham (1838) | United Kingdom | ||||
| Dogali obelisk | 2 m (6.34 m with base) | Ramesses II | 1279–1213 BC | Heliopolis | Italy | [18] [19] | ||||
| Abishemu obelisk | 1.25 m (1.45 m with base) | Abishemu (King of Byblos) | 1800s BC | Temple of the Obelisks | Lebanon | [20] | ||||
| Karnak obelisk of Seti II | 0.95 m | Seti II | 1203–1197 BC | Karnak (in situ) | Egypt | [21] | ||||
| Luxor obelisk | 0.95 m (original 3 m) | Ramesses III | 1186–1155 BC | Karnak | Luxor Museum (1923) | Egypt | [22] | |||
| Obelisks of Nectanebo II | 0.95 m (original 5.5 m) | Nectanebo II | 360–342 BC | Hermopolis | London | United Kingdom | ||||
. Cooper. William Ricketts . Chabas . François . François Chabas . A Short History of the Egyptian Obelisks . Bagster . 1877 .
. Labib Habachi . The obelisks of Egypt : skyscrapers of the past . Scribner . New York . 1977 . 978-0-684-14805-2 . 2614302.
. Joseph Bonomi the Younger . Joseph Bonomi the Younger . 1843 . Notes on Obelisks . 40 v . Hathi Trust.
. Henry Honychurch Gorringe. Egyptian Obelisks . John C. Nimmo . Nineteenth Century Collections Online (NCCO): Photography: The World through the Lens . 1885 . Google Books.