The Obelisco Agonale stands as a centerpiece in the Piazza Navona, topped by a metal dove clutching an olive branch. Its granite shaft originated in Egypt, but Romans later carved the hieroglyphs into it to mimic genuine ancient Egyptian…
Egyptian Obelisks of Rome
Follow the ancient stone needles brought by emperors from the Nile to decorate Rome's grandest public squares. On this walk, you'll see how popes topped pagan sun monuments with Christian crosses to reshape the city skyline.
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1. Obelisco Agonale
2. Elephant and Obelisk
A small Egyptian elephant carved from white marble carries a stone obelisk on its back in the center of the piazza. Gian Lorenzo Bernini designed the monument in sixteen sixty-seven, basing his creation on a dream described in a…
3. Egyptian Obelisk (Macuteo)
The Macuteo obelisk stands on a pedestal decorated with dolphins, topped by a small bronze cross. It originally arrived in Rome from Heliopolis to adorn the Temple of Isis. After lying buried for centuries near the church of San Macuto,…
4. Obelisk of Montecitorio
The Obelisk of Montecitorio rises from the center of the piazza as a single shaft of red granite, capped by a small bronze globe and cross. Pharaoh Psamtik the Second ordered this stone carved in Egypt over twenty-five hundred years ago.…
5. Sallustian Obelisk
The Sallustian Obelisk rises as a slender red granite spike atop the Pincian Hill, standing distinct from the rest of Rome’s skyline by its modest height and Egyptian inscriptions. It is a Roman imitation, carved under the order of Emperor…
6. The 'Pinciano' Obelisk
The Pinciano Obelisk stands nearly thirty feet tall, carved from a single block of red granite. It originally adorned the tomb of Antinous, the beloved companion of the Emperor Hadrian, in Egypt. In the nineteenth century, Pope Pius the…
7. Flaminio Obelisk
The Flaminio Obelisk stands as a red granite needle in the center of Piazza del Popolo, carved during the reign of Ramses the second. It traveled from Heliopolis to Rome on a ship specifically engineered by Emperor Augustus to transport…