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Cleopatra's Needle, London

Cleopatra's Needle in London is one of a pair of obelisks, together named Cleopatra's Needles, that were relocated from the ruins of the Caesareum of Alexandria in the 19th century. Inscribed by Thutmose III and later Ramesses II of the Egyptian New Kingdom, the obelisk was moved to Alexandria in 12 BC, where it remained for nearly two millennia.

Cleopatra's Needle
The western side of Cleopatra's Needle in London.
Coordinates51°30′31″N 0°07′13″W / 51.508517°N 0.120336°W / 51.508517; -0.120336Coordinates: 51°30′31″N 0°07′13″W / 51.508517°N 0.120336°W / 51.508517; -0.120336
LocationLondon
TypeObelisk
Completion date1450 BC

The obelisk was presented to the United Kingdom in 1819 by the ruler of Egypt and Sudan Muhammad Ali, in commemoration of the victories of Lord Nelson at the Battle of the Nile and Sir Ralph Abercromby at the Battle of Alexandria in 1801. Although the British government welcomed the gesture, it declined to fund the expense of transporting it to London. It was subsequently erected on the Victoria Embankment in Westminster, in 1878.

History

 
The inscriptions on the two side columns commemorate military victories of Ramesses II, while the middle column contains an older inscription of Thutmose III

The obelisk was originally erected in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis on the orders of Thutmose III, around 1450 BC. It is of granite, brought from the quarries of Aswan, near the first cataract of the Nile. Thutmose III had a single column of text carved on each face, these were translated by E. A. Wallis Budge.[1] Other inscriptions were added about 200 years later by Ramesses II to commemorate his military victories: these are in two columns on each face, flanking the original inscriptions. The obelisks were moved to Alexandria and set up in the Caesareum, a temple built by Cleopatra in honour of Mark Antony or Julius Caesar by the Romans in 12 BC, during the reign of Augustus, but were toppled some time later. This had the fortuitous effect of burying their faces and so preserving most of the hieroglyphs from the effects of weathering.

Transport from Alexandria

The obelisk remained in Alexandria until 1877 when Sir William James Erasmus Wilson, a distinguished anatomist and dermatologist, sponsored its transportation to London from Alexandria at a cost of some £10,000 (equivalent to over £1,000,000 in 2020[2]). Following consultation with Mathew William Simpson, a railway and locomotive engineer working for the Khedive of Egypt and a friend of Wilson who shared his passion for Egyptian antiquities, it was dug out of the sand in which it had been buried for nearly 2,000 years and was encased in a great iron cylinder, 92 feet (28 metres) long and 16 feet (4.9 metres) in diameter. This was designed by the engineer John Dixon (from original plans drawn up for Wilson by Mathew William Simpson, who was unable to undertake the work due to being under contract to the Khedive), and dubbed Cleopatra, to be commanded by Captain Carter. It was built at the Thames Iron Works, shipped to Alexandria in separate pieces, and built around the obelisk by Waynman Dixon, John's brother.[3] It had a vertical stem and stern, a rudder, two bilge keels, a mast for balancing sails, and a deck house. This acted as a floating pontoon which was to be towed to London by the ship Olga, commanded by Captain Booth.[4][better source needed]

 
London's Needle being erected, August 1878.

The effort almost met with disaster on 14 October 1877, in a storm in the Bay of Biscay, when the Cleopatra began wildly rolling, and became uncontrollable. The Olga sent out a rescue boat with six volunteers, but the boat capsized and all six crew were lost – they are named on a bronze plaque attached to the foot of the needle's mounting stone. Captain Booth on the Olga eventually managed to get his ship next to the Cleopatra and rescued Captain Carter and the five crew members aboard Cleopatra. Captain Booth reported the Cleopatra "abandoned and sinking", but she stayed afloat, drifting in the Bay, until found four days later by Spanish trawler boats, and then rescued by the Glasgow steamer Fitzmaurice and taken to Ferrol in Spain for repairs. The Master of the Fitzmaurice lodged a salvage claim of £5,000 which had to be settled before departure from Ferrol, but it was negotiated down and settled for £2,000.[4][better source needed] The William Watkins Ltd paddle tug Anglia, under the command of Captain David Glue, was then commissioned to tow the Cleopatra back to the Thames. On their arrival in the estuary on 21 January 1878, the school children of Gravesend were given the day off.[5][better source needed] A wooden model of the obelisk had previously been placed outside the Houses of Parliament, but the location had been rejected, so the London needle was finally erected on the Victoria Embankment on 12 September 1878.[6]

Erection

 
Egyptian-style additions at the base of the obelisk
 
Egyptian-style sphinx to the east of the obelisk

The original master stone mason who worked on the granite foundation was Lambeth-born William Henry Gould (1822–1891).[citation needed]

On erection of the obelisk in 1878, a time capsule was concealed in the front part of the pedestal containing: a set of 12 photographs of the best-looking English women of the day, a box of hairpins, a box of cigars, several tobacco pipes, a set of imperial weights, a baby's bottle, some children's toys, a shilling razor, a hydraulic jack and some samples of the cable used in the erection, a 3-foot (90-centimetre) bronze model of the monument, a complete set of contemporary British coins, a rupee, a portrait of Queen Victoria, a history of the transport of the monument plans, written on vellum, a translation of the inscriptions, copies of the Bible in several languages, a copy of John 3:16 in 215 languages,[7] a copy of Whitaker's Almanack, a Bradshaw Railway Guide, a map of London and copies of 10 daily newspapers.

 
Cleopatra's Needle, London, as seen from the River Thames

Cleopatra's Needle is flanked by two faux-Egyptian sphinxes, designed by the English architect George John Vulliamy. The sphinxes are cast in bronze and bear hieroglyphic inscriptions that say netjer nefer men-kheper-re di ankh, which translates as "the good god, Thuthmosis III given life". These sphinxes appear to be looking at the Needle rather than guarding it, due to the sphinxes' improper or backwards installation. The Embankment has other Egyptian flourishes, such as buxom winged sphinxes on the armrests of benches. On 4 September 1917, during World War I, a bomb from a German air raid landed near the needle. In commemoration of this event, the damage remains unrepaired to this day and is clearly visible in the form of shrapnel holes and gouges on the right-hand sphinx. Restoration work was carried out in 2005.

See also

References

  1. ^ Wallis Budge, E. A. (1926). Cleopatra's Needles and Other Egyptian Obelisks. London: Religious Tract Society. pp. 168–171.
  2. ^ "in2013dollars.com". In 2013 Dollars. 8 June 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  3. ^ "Waynman Dixon". Graces Guide. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  4. ^ a b "That Darn Needle!". Thames Tugs (enthusiast site). Retrieved 28 December 2007.
  5. ^ "SS Anglia". Thames Tugs (enthusiast site). Retrieved 28 December 2007.
  6. ^ Chaney, Edward (2011). "Roma Britannica and the Cultural Memory of Egypt: Lord Arundel and the Obelisk of Domitian". In Marshall, D.; Wolfe, K.; Russell, S. (eds.). Roma Britannica: Art Patronage and Cultural Exchange in Eighteenth-Century Rome. British School at Rome. pp. 147–70.
  7. ^ Canton, William (1904). The Story of the Bible Society. London: John Murray. p. 1.

External links

  •   Media related to Cleopatra's Needle (London) at Wikimedia Commons

cleopatra, needle, london, this, article, about, obelisk, london, article, describing, original, pair, cleopatra, needles, cleopatra, needle, london, pair, obelisks, together, named, cleopatra, needles, that, were, relocated, from, ruins, caesareum, alexandria. This article is about the obelisk in London For the article describing the original pair see Cleopatra s Needles Cleopatra s Needle in London is one of a pair of obelisks together named Cleopatra s Needles that were relocated from the ruins of the Caesareum of Alexandria in the 19th century Inscribed by Thutmose III and later Ramesses II of the Egyptian New Kingdom the obelisk was moved to Alexandria in 12 BC where it remained for nearly two millennia Cleopatra s NeedleThe western side of Cleopatra s Needle in London Coordinates51 30 31 N 0 07 13 W 51 508517 N 0 120336 W 51 508517 0 120336 Coordinates 51 30 31 N 0 07 13 W 51 508517 N 0 120336 W 51 508517 0 120336LocationLondonTypeObeliskCompletion date1450 BCThe obelisk was presented to the United Kingdom in 1819 by the ruler of Egypt and Sudan Muhammad Ali in commemoration of the victories of Lord Nelson at the Battle of the Nile and Sir Ralph Abercromby at the Battle of Alexandria in 1801 Although the British government welcomed the gesture it declined to fund the expense of transporting it to London It was subsequently erected on the Victoria Embankment in Westminster in 1878 Contents 1 History 2 Transport from Alexandria 3 Erection 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksHistory Edit The inscriptions on the two side columns commemorate military victories of Ramesses II while the middle column contains an older inscription of Thutmose III The obelisk was originally erected in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis on the orders of Thutmose III around 1450 BC It is of granite brought from the quarries of Aswan near the first cataract of the Nile Thutmose III had a single column of text carved on each face these were translated by E A Wallis Budge 1 Other inscriptions were added about 200 years later by Ramesses II to commemorate his military victories these are in two columns on each face flanking the original inscriptions The obelisks were moved to Alexandria and set up in the Caesareum a temple built by Cleopatra in honour of Mark Antony or Julius Caesar by the Romans in 12 BC during the reign of Augustus but were toppled some time later This had the fortuitous effect of burying their faces and so preserving most of the hieroglyphs from the effects of weathering Transport from Alexandria EditThe obelisk remained in Alexandria until 1877 when Sir William James Erasmus Wilson a distinguished anatomist and dermatologist sponsored its transportation to London from Alexandria at a cost of some 10 000 equivalent to over 1 000 000 in 2020 2 Following consultation with Mathew William Simpson a railway and locomotive engineer working for the Khedive of Egypt and a friend of Wilson who shared his passion for Egyptian antiquities it was dug out of the sand in which it had been buried for nearly 2 000 years and was encased in a great iron cylinder 92 feet 28 metres long and 16 feet 4 9 metres in diameter This was designed by the engineer John Dixon from original plans drawn up for Wilson by Mathew William Simpson who was unable to undertake the work due to being under contract to the Khedive and dubbed Cleopatra to be commanded by Captain Carter It was built at the Thames Iron Works shipped to Alexandria in separate pieces and built around the obelisk by Waynman Dixon John s brother 3 It had a vertical stem and stern a rudder two bilge keels a mast for balancing sails and a deck house This acted as a floating pontoon which was to be towed to London by the ship Olga commanded by Captain Booth 4 better source needed London s Needle being erected August 1878 The effort almost met with disaster on 14 October 1877 in a storm in the Bay of Biscay when the Cleopatra began wildly rolling and became uncontrollable The Olga sent out a rescue boat with six volunteers but the boat capsized and all six crew were lost they are named on a bronze plaque attached to the foot of the needle s mounting stone Captain Booth on the Olga eventually managed to get his ship next to the Cleopatra and rescued Captain Carter and the five crew members aboard Cleopatra Captain Booth reported the Cleopatra abandoned and sinking but she stayed afloat drifting in the Bay until found four days later by Spanish trawler boats and then rescued by the Glasgow steamer Fitzmaurice and taken to Ferrol in Spain for repairs The Master of the Fitzmaurice lodged a salvage claim of 5 000 which had to be settled before departure from Ferrol but it was negotiated down and settled for 2 000 4 better source needed The William Watkins Ltd paddle tug Anglia under the command of Captain David Glue was then commissioned to tow the Cleopatra back to the Thames On their arrival in the estuary on 21 January 1878 the school children of Gravesend were given the day off 5 better source needed A wooden model of the obelisk had previously been placed outside the Houses of Parliament but the location had been rejected so the London needle was finally erected on the Victoria Embankment on 12 September 1878 6 Erection EditThis article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Cleopatra s Needle London news newspapers books scholar JSTOR July 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message Egyptian style additions at the base of the obelisk Egyptian style sphinx to the east of the obelisk The original master stone mason who worked on the granite foundation was Lambeth born William Henry Gould 1822 1891 citation needed On erection of the obelisk in 1878 a time capsule was concealed in the front part of the pedestal containing a set of 12 photographs of the best looking English women of the day a box of hairpins a box of cigars several tobacco pipes a set of imperial weights a baby s bottle some children s toys a shilling razor a hydraulic jack and some samples of the cable used in the erection a 3 foot 90 centimetre bronze model of the monument a complete set of contemporary British coins a rupee a portrait of Queen Victoria a history of the transport of the monument plans written on vellum a translation of the inscriptions copies of the Bible in several languages a copy of John 3 16 in 215 languages 7 a copy of Whitaker s Almanack a Bradshaw Railway Guide a map of London and copies of 10 daily newspapers Cleopatra s Needle London as seen from the River Thames Cleopatra s Needle is flanked by two faux Egyptian sphinxes designed by the English architect George John Vulliamy The sphinxes are cast in bronze and bear hieroglyphic inscriptions that say netjer nefer men kheper re di ankh which translates as the good god Thuthmosis III given life These sphinxes appear to be looking at the Needle rather than guarding it due to the sphinxes improper or backwards installation The Embankment has other Egyptian flourishes such as buxom winged sphinxes on the armrests of benches On 4 September 1917 during World War I a bomb from a German air raid landed near the needle In commemoration of this event the damage remains unrepaired to this day and is clearly visible in the form of shrapnel holes and gouges on the right hand sphinx Restoration work was carried out in 2005 See also EditList of Egyptian obelisksReferences Edit Wallis Budge E A 1926 Cleopatra s Needles and Other Egyptian Obelisks London Religious Tract Society pp 168 171 in2013dollars com In 2013 Dollars 8 June 2020 Retrieved 8 June 2020 Waynman Dixon Graces Guide Retrieved 16 December 2020 a b That Darn Needle Thames Tugs enthusiast site Retrieved 28 December 2007 SS Anglia Thames Tugs enthusiast site Retrieved 28 December 2007 Chaney Edward 2011 Roma Britannica and the Cultural Memory of Egypt Lord Arundel and the Obelisk of Domitian In Marshall D Wolfe K Russell S eds Roma Britannica Art Patronage and Cultural Exchange in Eighteenth Century Rome British School at Rome pp 147 70 Canton William 1904 The Story of the Bible Society London John Murray p 1 External links Edit Media related to Cleopatra s Needle London at Wikimedia Commons Portals Ancient Egypt London Visual arts Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Cleopatra 27s Needle London amp oldid 1130165918, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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