You are along the route: EGYPT THE EMPIRE THE POPES. THE CITY OF OBELISKS
Viale Trinità dei Monti, 1
www.villamedici.it
Every day except Monday 10:00-19:00. Closed on 1st January, 1st May, 25th December. Admission fee.
The obelisk, in pink granite from the quarries in Aswan and 6.27 m high, was erected during the reign of Ramses II (XIII century BC) in Egypt, probably in Heliopolis, and brought to Rome in imperial times. It was found in sixteenth century in the area of the sanctuary of Isis in the Campus Martius and placed in the gardens of the villa by Cardinal Ferdinando de’ Medici, who bought it to enrich his collection of antiquities.
In 1790 it was taken to Florence, to adorn the Boboli Gardens, and replaced, in Villa Medici, by an accurate reconstruction.
Torna alla navigazione interna
Italiano