The Boboli obelisk, previously called the Obelisco Mediceo, is an ancient Egyptian granite

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by An ...

, which was moved in the 18th century from Rome to Florence, where it was erected in the

Boboli Gardens The Boboli Gardens ( it, Giardino di Boboli) is a historical park of the city of Florence that was opened to the public in 1766. Originally designed for the Medici, it represents one of the first and most important examples of the Italian garden, ...

History

The granite from which the obelisk is carved comes from

Aswan Aswan (, also ; ar, أسوان, ʾAswān ; cop, Ⲥⲟⲩⲁⲛ ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the ...

and the inscriptions are dedicated to

Atum Atum (, Egyptian: ''jtm(w)'' or ''tm(w)'', ''reconstructed'' ; Coptic ''Atoum''), sometimes rendered as Atem or Tem, is an important deity in Egyptian mythology. Name Atum's name is thought to be derived from the verb ''tm'' which means 'to c ...

, the deity of the city of Heliopolis. It is suspected to have been first erected in that city during the reign of

Ramesses II Ramesses II ( egy, rꜥ-ms-sw ''Rīʿa-məsī-sū'', , meaning "Ra is the one who bore him"; ), commonly known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Along with Thutmose III he is often regarded as ...

. In the first century AD, it was moved to Rome by

Domitian Domitian (; la, Domitianus; 24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Fl ...

and placed in the Temple of Isis in the

Campus Martius The Campus Martius (Latin for the "Field of Mars", Italian ''Campo Marzio'') was a publicly owned area of ancient Rome about in extent. In the Middle Ages, it was the most populous area of Rome. The IV rione of Rome, Campo Marzio, which cove ...

, along with three other obelisks still in Rome: the Obelisk at the Monument to those fallen at Dogali, the Obelisk of Piazza of the Pantheon, and the obelisk in front of Santa Minerva. In the sixteenth century, Cardinal

Ferdinand I de' Medici Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (30 July 1549 – 3 February 1609) was Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1587 to 1609, having succeeded his older brother Francesco I. Early life Ferdinando was the fifth son (the third surviving at t ...

bought the 6-metre high obelisk in Rome and placed it in the gardens of the

Villa Medici The Villa Medici () is a Mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, ...

. When the Grand Duke Peter Leopold of Lorraine became Grand-Duke of Tuscany, he transferred to Florence many of the artworks in the Villa Medici. In 1788 he moved the obelisk, which weighed 9000 kilograms, travelling to first to Livorno, then by land to Florence. The voyage took four months. He also moved the Ancient Roman basin made of granite that had been associated with the obelisk in the Villa Medici. It was erected near the center of the Amphitheater of the

in 1790, along the main axis leading away from the palace. In 1840, the granite basin, originally thought to derive from the Terme Alessandrine found in the Campo Martius of Rome, was also included in front of the obelisk. The arrangement was designed by

Pasquale Poccianti The Cisternoni of Livorno are a series of three large buildings in the neoclassical style at Livorno, in Tuscany, Italy. They were constructed between 1829 and 1848 as part of a complex of purification plants and storage tanks to the Leopold ...

. The obelisk is surmounted by a gilded orb and the base has four turtles. Both these accoutrements were present in Rome. Underlying the traditional solar winged scarab to the top of the obelisk you can read the name and the first name of

, from which the obelisk was erected. Entries, which are its titles, read: "Grand Master, powerful in all countries, the King, the Son of Tum and intelligent son of

." The King is also called "loved" by Tum and Ra, and this shows that the obelisk is directly from Heliopolis, the city of the "Sun" (Ra).Par of the content in this edit is translated from the existing Italian Wikipedia article at :it:Obelisco Boboli; see its history for attribution.

Bibliography

* Litta Maria Medrano (ed), '' The Boboli Gardens '', Banca Toscana, 2003. * John Henry Parker "The Twelve Egyptian Obelisks In Rome: Their History Explained By Translations Of The Inscriptions Upon Them" (1879)

References

{{Coord, 43, 45, 50.78, N, 11, 15, 3.34, E, display=title, type:landmark_region:IT Boboli

History

See also

Bibliography

References