Obelisk of Axum, Ancient obelisk in Axum, Ethiopia
The Obelisk of Axum is a stone funerary stele in Axum, Ethiopia, carved from a single block of granite and standing over a royal burial site. Its four sides display rectangles cut into the stone that resemble stacked windows and doors of a multistorey building.
The stone was erected in the early fourth century CE over a burial chamber, during a time when the Kingdom of Axum rose to become one of the most important trading centres in ancient Africa. This period also marks the region's transition to Christianity, which reshaped its political and religious structures.
The upright granite block marks the remains of a royal tomb in the northern stele field, still regarded as a sacred site by the local population. Its surface carries geometric patterns and symbolic doors understood in the region as a link to the spiritual world.
The stele field sits on open ground best explored on foot when the morning sun lights the granite. A shaded rest area is available nearby, as the site offers little natural cover under intense sun exposure.
Italian troops removed the stele in 1937 and reassembled it in Rome in front of the ministry building. After diplomatic negotiations it returned in three pieces by air transport and was re-erected at its original spot in 2008.
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