The Ancient Egyptian Obelisk Of Theodosius I In Istanbul Turkey

in #travel7 years ago

 The Ancient Egyptian Obelisk Of Theodosius Of Pharaoh Thutmose III In Istanbul Turkey

This obelisk which stands tall in Sultanahmet Square in Istanbul was originally erected at the Temple of Karnak to give honor to Pharaoh Thutmosis III for his second jubilee. It once stood near the seventh Pylon with a second obelisk. One stood on each side of the temple entrance. Made of pink granite, they were originally 95 feet tall each. Only one of the two obelisks were moved to it's current site. It was only 65 feet tall after moving to the current site byTeodosius I. It stands proud in the square with a god on each side. Emperor Theodosius, reigning Emperor in 390 AD, had only 65 feet of the obelisk moved to Constantinople. Today it stands tall with a god on each side holding his hand, which is the symbol of life, in Sultanahmet Square. This is the most ancient monument in Istanbul. 

A Close Up View Of The Hieroglyphs On The Obelisk

All four sides of the Obelisk give honor for the great accomplishments of Pharaoh Thutmosis III in crossing the great Euphrates River, which is called the Great "Circle of Naharina", and is  in the country of Syria. At the top of each of the four sides is a scene showing the Pharaoh giving a gift to the god  Amon-Ra.  The Pharaoh was given the title of  "Lord of Jubilees"  on all four sides of the obelisk. This is followed on all four sides by a listing of the many titles of the Pharaoh. Next, each side lists his many accomplishments. The obelisk was placed on a giant base of marble from the 4th century. It was placed on four bronze footers to help even out the weight. 

 Barbarians Are Shown Kneeling At The Base Of The Pedestal

Theodosius 1 with his advisers, and family with the barbarians kneeling below in submission. The marble base has two sides with an inscription. One in Latin and the other in Greek. 

  The Emperor And His Court

 Theodosius Is Offering A Laurel Wreath To The Victor

Theodosius is offering a laurel wreath to the victor, on the marble base of the Obelisk of Thutmosis III at the Hippodrome of Constantinople.  He is seen here with spectators and other attendees at what is most likely a chariot race. You also see the signs of festivities at the bottom of the base.  On the far right sign is a water organ owned by Ctesibius. Ctesibius was a Greek scholar and Mathematician  from Egypt. 

This Side Shows The Bringing Of Gifts To Theodosius

The Marble Base Showing The East Side With Latin Inscription

Two of the sides of the base have inscriptions. This one is on the East side and  is in Latin. It reads:

" DIFFICILIS QVONDAM DOMINIS PARERE SERENIS
IVSSVS ET EXTINCTIS PALMAM PORTARE TYRANNIS
OMNIA THEODOSIO CEDVNT SVBOLIQVE PERENNI
TER DENIS SIC VICTVS EGO DOMITVSQVE DIEBVS
IVDICE SVB PROCLO SVPERAS ELATVS AD AVRAS "

The English translation is as Follows:(Wikipedia)

"Though formerly I opposed resistance, I was ordered to obey the serene masters and to carry their palm, once the tyrants had been overcome. All things yield to Theodosius and to his everlasting descendants. This is true of me too – I was mastered and overcome in three times ten days and raised towards the upper air, under Governor Proculus."

There is also a Byzantine  Greek inscription on the West side.

 "KIONA TETPAΠΛEYPON AEI XΘONI KEIMENON AXΘOCMOYNOC ANACTHCAI ΘEYΔOCIOC BACIΛEYCTOΛMHCAC ΠPOKΛOC EΠEKEKΛETO KAI TOCOC ECTHKIΩN HEΛIOIC EN TPIAKONTA ΔYO "

The English translation is as Follows:(Wikipedia)

 "This column with four sides which lay on the earth, only the emperor Theodosius dared to lift again its burden; Proclos was invited to execute his order; and this great column stood up in 32 days." 

The Obelisk of Theodosius is the oldest monument in Istanbul and of a major importance to Turkish history. It is a must see for adventurers traveling in the Istanbul area. 

 Sources: 

The Obelisks of Egypt by Labib Habachi (1984)

 http://www.greatistanbul.com/obelisk.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obelisk_of_Theodosius



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This post is upvoted by Polsza for 44 %.
If you want help us growing upvote this comment.
Thanks !

I loved seeing this ancient Egyptian heritage, amazing!

Yes @pilgrimtraveler, it is very amazing to see.

Very interesting structure. Very unique... Mysterious yet elegant!
Thanks for sharing this @exploretraveler

Thank you @dante01 for your kind words and support.

when I was a kid and cable TV starts airing NatGeo and Discovery Channel here in Philippines this segment about ancient history is my favorite. I even stayed up whole day watching the various topics.

We still watch that at home, and there is allot of great information. NatGeo was so good when we where kids, and we would read the magazines in the village library.

Good to hear that.
This kind of TV programs made me a volunteer to reach out, nature rescue activity and tribal village partner.

This is one of the greatest cultural heritages in the world. Steady! Thanks for sharing

Thank You @samymubarraq and we found this glowing under the moon at 12:00AM it was a very strange but exciting evening in Istanbul.

Oh God .. you wait until midnight to get this great moment? I really salute! One day I will be there with you to doing this extraordinary thing. Hopefully.

The obelisk of Thutmose III comes from the great temple of Amon-Re in Karnak. He was transported to Alexandria under Constantius II (Emperor 337-61), along with the present Lateran obelisk, but he had to wait until 390, under the reign of Theodosius I, to find his place on the spina of the Racecourse of Constantinople.

This final operation was certainly not without difficulties, since the monument broke during its transport or recovery: it lacks the lower third, which gives it a silhouette a bit short in relation to other Egyptian obelisks. Its height is today only 19 m. Originally, it was to reach thirty meters, about as much as the Lateran obelisk in Rome.

The hieroglyphs on the obelisk celebrate the victories of Tuthmosis III on the banks of the Euphrates. The marble pedestal, famous him, Theodosius I.

I loved seeing this ancient Egyptian heritage, amazing!. Thanks for this amazing post.

Thank you @jhlimon007 we thought it was unique, and not something we normally find.

the place is very beautiful

Thank you @shaikatkm we found this just sitting under the moonlight.

welcome dear and please visit my blog please

Sure no problem.

you are good and my pleasure

This is amazing. Thanks for sharing.

wow very Beautifull Photo and good enjoy the travel 😊😊

İstanbul is a historic city and ı am turkish :)

I share historical things in my profile, you may want to follow :)

Absolutely amazing. So much history and so beautiful. Must of been amazing to see this obelisk in person.
Great post like always.

It is very amazing . very very nice. very interesting. So good post.

Thank you @rekha007. Glad you enjoyed.

wowwww.... what a structure !!! mindblowing...

Glad you found it interesting @prabaltalukder.

Absolutely amazed to see the Ancient Egyptian Heritage, how brilliantly done !!! Wow !
Such a wonderful history!!! So Very Remarkable !!!

Thank you @amitsharma.

You are welcome! :)

I saw this monument last weekend, I spend a few days in Istanbul was quite amazed by the obelisk, happy to have this info now!

Glad you enjoyed the information @i-follow-wine.

amazing pics @exploretraveler Egyptian heritage is very rich and colorful and it's worth to watch ancient egyptian heritage in Istanbule Turkey. awesome share.

Thank you @kamchore have you been there before?

not at all. Although one of my cousin live in Turkey. I love to travel. may be i have a plan in future

Very interesting. I didn't even know about this. I as the typical american thought the washington monument was original.

Glad you enjoyed this @realestatecoach. It was an unique opportunity.

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Hi ! What a fantastic monument! I absolutely adore it.

I recently traveled to Turkey and it is still one of the most stunning countries I have ever seen.

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Amazing! Thank you for sharing this.

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I didn't know that the world could be so mind-blowingly beautiful.

oh, we have a similar obelisk but it's devoted to the heroes of the second world war
it's in Kerch, Russia