The Aswân Obelisk / With some remarks on the Ancient Engineering

SERVICE DES ANTIQUITÉS DE L’ÉGYPTE
THE ASWÂN OBELISK WITH SOME REMARKS ON THE ANCIENT ENGINEERING
BY R. ENGELBACH CHIEF INSPECTOR, ANTIQUITIES DEPARTMENT
LE CAIRE IMPRIMERIE DE L’INSTITUT FRANÇAIS D’ARCHÉOLOGIE ORIENTALE
1922
THE ASWÂN OBELISK WITH SOME REMARKS ON THE ANCIENT ENGINEERING.
(1) The unfinished obelisk of Aswân lies in a quarry on the south-east side of the mediæval Arab cemetery, being about twenty minutes walk from the Cataract Hotel. It is approached by a small valley leading up south-eastwards from the track of the old Barrage railway.
Up to the time of the visit of King Fuad—then Sultan—in the winter of 1920–21, only about 22 metres of the obelisk were exposed to view, the remainder running down into a vast heap of blocks and chips. The curious trench, made round the obelisk for the purpose of detaching it from the rock, has long interested visitors, and His Majesty expressed a desire that the whole obelisk be cleared in order to obtain, if possible, new data as to ancient methods of quarrying, and to expose a unique monument.
(2) I began the work shortly after the departure of King Fuad, and soon found that the excavation would be more extensive than I had at first supposed; the length of the obelisk had reached 36 metres by April 1921, and the chip-heap, covering the butt end of the obelisk, began to shew signs of giving way. I had made arrangements, as regards the angle of the chip-heap, supposing that the obelisk was not larger than any of the known obelisks. Thirty-six metres was a surprise, so, as Ramadan was approaching, I abandoned the work for the season and applied for a further credit to make a complete clearance. This was done in the winter of 1921–22 by Mahmûd Eff. Mohammad, Inspector of Edfù, assisted by Mustafa Eff. Hasan, ‘chef de fouilles’ of the same district. I visited the site from time to time whenever my {2} other work permitted, but it was not till the end of the tourist season that I had sufficient time to study the obelisk.