Obelisk facts for kids
An obelisk is a stone made monument, much like a column but supporting nothing.
Obelisks were erected by Ancient Egyptians for an commemoration. Obelisks were usually made of a single piece of stone.
A bird's eye view of obelisk is square and this structure has gradually tapering four sides and its ends in a pyramidal top.
Originally, Obelisks originated with the holy stone of sanctuary which served the sun god, Ra, in Heliopolis. It usually made a pair in front of gate or sanctuary, and each side of obelisk was written hymn and results of king in hieroglyph.
Obelisks can have interior spaces.
There are similar form of obelisk in Europe and America, and some of them were taken from Egypt by Europeans and Americans.
A modern Obelisk has been raised in Washington (USA). An Egyptian one has been taken to Paris by Napoleon.
Images for kids
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One of the two Luxor Obelisks, on the Place de la Concorde in Paris; a red granite monolithic column, 23 metres (75 feet) high, including the base, which weighs over 250 metric tons (280 short tons).
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Pylon of the Temple of Luxor with the remaining Luxor Obelisk in front (the second is today on the Place de la Concorde in Paris).
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Obelisk of Pharaoh Senusret I, Al-Maalla area of Al-Matariyyah district in modern Heliopolis
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Tip of Hatshepsut's fallen obelisk, Karnak Temple Complex, Luxor, Egypt
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The Dutch Golden Age painter Bartholomeus Breenbergh placed an obelisk in the background of his 1655 painting Joseph Sells Grain
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King Ezana's Stele in Axum
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The Wellington Monument in Dublin, built between 1817 and 1861 to commemorate the victories of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
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The Brothers Broglie Obelisk at the Monrepos Park in Vyborg, Russia, erected in 1827
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The Stone of the Empress by Carl Ludvig Engel, erected in 1835 to commemorate Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia, at the Market Square in Helsinki, Finland
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The Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., built between 1848 and 1884 to commemorate George Washington
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The Obelisk of Buenos Aires, erected in 1936 to commemorate the quadricentennial of the foundation of the city
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The National Monument in Jakarta, built in 1961–1975 to commemorate the struggle for Indonesian independence
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A view from ground level of the Via della Conciliazione in Rome
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Grave of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) in the central cemetery of Vienna
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Grave of Jean-Baptiste Hubert (1781–1845) in the cemetery of Yves, Charente-Maritime (France)
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Islamic cemetery in Sarajevo, with columnar headstones
See also
In Spanish: Obelisco para niños
