Obelisk
Obelisk

Author: Judith Jones

Publisher: Prima Lifestyles

Published: 1996

Total Pages: 404

ISBN-13: 9780761504191

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Archaeologist and historian John Howard is stymied in his work by the huge amount of historical material lost in the Cataclysm of 2479. When an alien technology makes time travel possible, Howard becomes obsessed with retrieving an unimaginable hoard of artifacts--the treasure trove of humanity's history.

Egypt in Italy
Egypt in Italy

Author: Molly Swetnam-Burland

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2015-04-06

Total Pages: 263

ISBN-13: 1107040485

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This book examines the appetite for Egyptian and Egyptian-looking artwork in Italy during the century following Rome's annexation of Aegyptus as a province. In the early imperial period, Roman interest in Egyptian culture was widespread, as evidenced by works ranging from the monumental obelisks, brought to the capital over the Mediterranean Sea by the emperors, to locally made emulations of Egyptian artifacts found in private homes and in temples to Egyptian gods. Although the foreign appearance of these artworks was central to their appeal, this book situates them within their social, political, and artistic contexts in Roman Italy. Swetnam-Burland focuses on what these works meant to their owners and their viewers in their new settings, by exploring evidence for the artists who produced them and by examining their relationship to the contemporary literature that informed Roman perceptions of Egyptian history, customs, and myths.

Egyptian Obelisks
Egyptian Obelisks

Author: Henry Honeychurch Gorringe

Publisher:

Published: 1885

Total Pages: 310

ISBN-13:

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"A deluxe book produced at the point that Harroun and Bierstadt dissolved their business ... The Artotypes in this book are some of the finest produced by Bierstadt. The pictorial record of this engineering feat is remarkable in itself; casing and tilting the obelisk, loading it into the side of the ship by removing part of the hull, pulling it out on a special dock in the Hudson and then moving it by custom made rail from the river to the site next to the Metropolitan Museum. The illustrations show the hieroglyphics, now mostly lost due to New York's polluted air, bright and clear."--Hanson Collection catalog, p. 82

Washington's Monument
Washington's Monument

Author: John Steele Gordon

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2016-02-02

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 1620406500

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The colorful story behind one of America's greatest monuments and of the ancient obelisks of Egypt, now scattered around the world. Conceived soon after the American Revolution ended, the great monument to George Washington was not finally completed until almost a century later; the great obelisk was finished in 1884, and remains the tallest stone structure in the world at 555 feet. The story behind its construction is a largely untold and intriguing piece of American history, which acclaimed historian John Steele Gordon relates with verve, connecting it to the colorful saga of the ancient obelisks of Egypt. Nobody knows how many obelisks were crafted in ancient Egypt, or even exactly how they were created and erected since they are made out of hard granite and few known tools of the time were strong enough to work granite. Generally placed in pairs at the entrances to temples, they have in modern times been ingeniously transported around the world to Istanbul, Paris, London, New York, and many other locations. Their stories illuminate that of the Washington Monument, once again open to the public following earthquake damage, and offer a new appreciation for perhaps the most iconic memorial in the country.

Moving the Obelisks:
Moving the Obelisks:

Author: Bern Dibner

Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing

Published: 2017-06-28

Total Pages: 130

ISBN-13: 1787204812

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Dating from the beginning of historical memory, the obelisks of ancient Egypt—those tall, tapering shafts typically weighing from 200 to 500 tons—were carved from a single block of solid stone to commemorate the ruler of the moment. Many of these ancient monoliths, taken from Egypt as trophies of conquest and symbols of power through the efforts of extraordinary human labor and engineering ingenuity, were re-established in the capitals and seats of empire that also inherited Egypt’s burden of civilization. While near the climax of their historical potency, obelisks were erected by Alexandria, Nineveh, Constantinople, Rome, Paris, London, New York, etc. Fascinating as obelisks are as tracers of world history, the methods by which they have been moved and raised from ca. B.C. 1500 to A.D. 1880 (when the New York obelisk was raised) are more interesting still, and this epic history and associated engineering feats are encapsulated in this volume. The book records information, as far as we have it, on the building of the pyramids and the moving of the obelisks, together with various conjectures. What is certain is that the obelisks were moved great distances by man power alone. We do have a full record of the moving of the Vatican obelisk in 1586 from several contemporary accounts, most especially that of the project’s deviser and chief engineer, Domenico Fontana, and this move is the central concern of the book: it details how Fontana, with the enthusiastic backing of Pope Sixtus V, solved the problem by utilizing 48 capstans spread over what is now St. Peter’s Square, turned by the combined muscle power of men and horses. Full accounts are also given of the Paris, London, and New York obelisks. Of particular interest here are the various methods—including a pontoon built around a prone obelisk—by which the monoliths were transported on the high seas. Contemporary engravings are reproduced throughout.

The Luxor Obelisk and Its Voyage to Paris
The Luxor Obelisk and Its Voyage to Paris

Author: Jean-Babtiste Apollinaire Lebas

Publisher: American University in Cairo Press

Published: 2021-03-08

Total Pages: 237

ISBN-13: 1649030282

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The extraordinary story of how an obelisk from the banks of Luxor was transferred to the Place de la Concorde in Paris in the early 19th century Transporting the Luxor obelisk from Egypt to Paris was one of the great engineering triumphs of the early nineteenth century. No obelisk this size (two hundred and fifty tons) had left Egypt in nearly two thousand years, and the task of bringing it fell to a young engineer, Apollinaire Lebas, a man of extraordinary resolve and ability. His is a tale of adventure, excitement, and drama, but one hardly known to the English-speaking world. Lebas’ team was struck by the plague; they ran out of wood; they had to wait four months for the Nile to rise to free their beached ship. But in the end, The Luxor, with its precious cargo on board, sailed down the Nile. On October 25, 1836 before two hundred thousand cheering Parisians, Lebas raised his obelisk. He was rewarded handsomely by his king, a medal with his name on it was struck, and his body lies in the famous Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris along with French luminaries. Now this first-ever translation of Lebas’s account, including digitally enhanced copies of his beautiful drawings, makes his remarkable story available to a wide audience.