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Montecitorio Obelisk

Monument at Egyptian obelisks of Rome · also called Obelisco di Montecitorio, Obelisco Solare, Solare obelisk, Obelisk of Psamtik II, Augustus sundial obelisk

The obelisk in front of the Italian parliament names Psamtik II, a king of the 26th Dynasty, who reigned 595–589 BC. His columns call him beloved of Atum, lord of Heliopolis, and of Ra-Horakhty.

Point your camera at a wall

Signs to look for

  1. Heart and windpipe F35nfr The heart and windpipe (nefer) opens Psamtik II's throne name, Neferibre.
  2. Heart F34ib The heart (ib) follows it: Nefer-ib-re, 'beautiful is the heart of Ra'.
  3. Sun N5rꜥ The sun disc closes the throne name and writes Ra in Ra-Horakhty on the tip.
  4. Sledge U15tm The sledge (tem) spells Atum, lord of Heliopolis, whom the king is said to be loved by.
  5. Column O28iwn The column writes Iunu, Heliopolis, in the epithets that follow the cartouches.

The story of Montecitorio Obelisk

It was cut at Aswan and set up in the sanctuary of the sun god at Heliopolis. Augustus brought it to Rome in 10 BC and made it the pointer of a vast sundial on the Campus Martius, with bronze lines and letters set into the pavement. Pliny already complained that it had stopped keeping good time.

Between the ninth and the eleventh centuries it fell and broke. Pieces turned up in the early sixteenth century, but an attempt to raise it under Sixtus V failed. Pius VI had it repaired with granite from the column of Antoninus Pius and set up here in 1792, with a globe on top.

The repairs show. Many signs on the south face were destroyed or recut, so read the other faces first.

What to see and read

Psamtik II's columns

They give his Golden Horus name, 'who makes the Two Lands beautiful', his throne name Neferibre and his name Psamtik, each with the god who loves him.

The pyramidion

The tip names Ra-Horakhty, great god, lord of the sky, who gives the king life and dominion.

Augustus' base

The ancient base carries his Latin dedication to the Sun after Egypt came under Roman power. Parts of it were recut in 1792.

The line in the pavement

A meridian line in the square recalls the sundial, though the shadow no longer falls on it.

Reading the hieroglyphs here

  • Read the north and east faces before the south, where many signs are restorations.
  • The square is often fenced in front of the parliament building: the camera's zoom reaches the upper columns from the barrier.
  • Look for the cartouche with the heart and windpipe at its top. That is Neferibre, the king's throne name.

Hiero Lens boxes the signs and names them, on your phone; nothing is uploaded. On worn stone, trace a sign over the photo.

Questions

Which pharaoh is on the Montecitorio obelisk?

Psamtik II of the 26th Dynasty, who reigned 595–589 BC. His throne name Neferibre and his name Psamtik both stand in cartouches.

Was the Montecitorio obelisk a sundial?

Yes. Augustus set it up in 10 BC as the pointer of a great sundial on the Campus Martius. Its shadow fell on lines of bronze set into a paved area.

Also at Egyptian obelisks of Rome

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Lateran Obelisk

The Lateran Obelisk in front of San Giovanni in Laterano names two kings. The middle column on each face belongs to Thutmose III, who ordered it for Karnak, and the two columns beside it to his grandson Thutmose IV, who finally raised it.

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Flaminio Obelisk

The obelisk in the middle of Piazza del Popolo carries the names of Seti I and his son Ramesses II. Seti's columns fill three faces, and Ramesses II inscribed the fourth face and added the side columns.

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Pantheon Obelisk

The obelisk on the fountain in front of the Pantheon names Ramesses II. His two cartouches are cut on its tip, and the columns on its shaft tie him to the sun god of Heliopolis.

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Minerva Obelisk

The obelisk on the back of Bernini's marble elephant names Apries, a king of the 26th Dynasty, who set it up at Sais in the Nile Delta around 580 BC. At about five and a half metres, it is the smallest of Rome's ancient obelisks.

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Pamphilj Obelisk

The obelisk on Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers is Egyptian granite with hieroglyphs written in Rome for the emperor Domitian. Its texts name Domitian, his father Vespasian and his brother Titus, and call the emperor Horus, strong bull, beloved of Maat.

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Dogali Obelisk

The obelisk in the garden on Viale Luigi Einaudi, near Termini station, carries hieroglyphs of Ramesses II, with his throne name Usermaatre Setepenre. Its texts are for the sun god of Heliopolis, where it first stood.

Read more about Montecitorio Obelisk

Where it is

Open in OpenStreetMap · Written from published sources and not yet checked on site by our team: displays and open tombs change.