Obélisque d'Arles, Roman obelisk in Place de la République, Arles, France

The Obélisque d'Arles is a slender, four-sided granite obelisk about 15 metres tall with its pedestal, tapering to a rounded point. It stands on a rectangular stone base whose corners carry four bronze lions by Antoine Laurent Dantan, set in a shallow pool with carved relief panels. The shaft is plain and uninscribed.

The obelisk was erected in the 4th century under Emperor Constantine in the spina of the Roman circus of Arles. After the circus was abandoned in the 6th century, it fell and broke in two. Rediscovered in 1389, it was re-erected on 26 March 1676 on the Place Royale, now Place de la République, with Latin inscriptions praising Louis XIV carved on its pedestal.

The obelisk stands on the site of the former Place Royale, renamed Place de la République, facing the town hall, the church of Saint-Trophime and the church of Sainte-Anne. Its pedestal carries four Latin inscriptions praising Louis XIV, engraved when the shaft was re-erected on 26 March 1676.

The obelisk stands in the middle of Place de la République, facing the town hall and a short walk from Saint-Trophime. The square is paved and level, so it can be circled on foot or by wheelchair. It was restored in 2023, when the pedestal and the fountain basin were consolidated and made watertight.

Unlike other Roman obelisks throughout the Mediterranean, this red granite monument bears no inscriptions on its surface. This unusual feature makes it a mysterious artwork that continues to fascinate archaeologists and visitors.