The New York Obelisk by C. E. Moldenke

The New York Obelisk: Cleopatra's Needle by C. E. Moldenke was published in 1891 and reprinted in the beginning of the 21st century. This old book is still interesting and valuable.

Charles Edward Moldenke (1860-1935) was an American Egyptologist, who served as a Lutheran minister. His book begins with the following message:

“The oldest nation on the globe sends her greeting to her youngest sister. The ‘Setting Sun’ has shed its last rays on the Old World from Egypt’s sunny land and now appears on this western shore as a brilliant ‘Rising Sun’. In the metropolis of the Western Hemisphere one of Egypt’s grandest treasures meets our eyes and, though silent, reminds us of her former greatness.”

The author has mixed feelings about ancient Egypt. He is impressed by the ancient monuments, but he does not like the absolute power which the pharaoh had. He is fond of the ancient literature, but he does not like the endless self-congratulations which are carved on the obelisks. They are “the poorest inscriptions that we meet in the entire Egyptian literature.”

The first four chapters give a general presentation of the obelisks: they come from a quarry at Syene (today Aswan) in the south of Egypt. Most of them were erected in Thebes (in Upper Egypt) and Heliopolis (in Lower Egypt). They were (nearly) always erected on the east side of the River Nile, because they were a symbol of the sunrise and of life. The pyramids, on the other hand, were built on the west side, because they were a symbol of the sunset and of death.

Chapter 5 gives the history of the New York Obelisk and explains how it was moved to the US. There are inscriptions from three pharaohs on this obelisk:

** Thothmes (or Thutmose) III, who ruled 1591-1565 BC

[Modern scholars think he ruled 1479-1425 BC]

** Ramses II, who ruled 1388-1322 BC

[Modern scholars think he ruled 1279-1213 BC]

** Osarkon (or Osorkon) I, who lived around 960 BC

[Modern scholars think he ruled 922-887 BC]

The obelisk was erected in Heliopolis by Thutmose III ca. 1450 BC. Following the Roman conquest of Egypt in 30 BC, Octavian (Augustus) had it moved to Alexandria in 13 or 12 BC. In 1879 it was taken down; in 1880 it was transported to New York; and in 1881 it was re-erected in Central Park.

The American project was supervised by Henry H. Gorringe, Lieutenant-Commander of the US Navy, whose book – Egyptian Obelisks (published in 1882) - is recommended by Moldenke. The bill for the project, which was paid by William H. Vanderbilt, came to US $ 102,576, a huge sum at the time.

In chapter 6 the author presents the hieroglyphic inscriptions on the obelisk as well as an English translation. The hieroglyphs are explained one by one, so the reader can understand how the translation is created. This chapter - the best and most important part of the book - is divided into six sections:

(1) The vignettes on the pyramidion (four faces)

(2) The inscriptions by Thutmose III: one central column on four sides

(3) The inscriptions by Ramses II: two columns (left and right) on four sides

(4) The inscriptions by Osorkon I, which are carved at the bottom of the obelisk, next to those of Ramses II

(5) The Greek and Latin inscriptions on the metal crabs, which the Romans placed under the four corners of the obelisk when it was re-erected in Alexandria; on this issue see A. C. Chapman, The Greek and Latin Inscriptions on the Obelisk-Crab in the Metropolitan Museum (1883)

(6) A double image of the four faces of the obelisk (presented over four pages): the left image shows the English translation, while the right shows the hieroglyphs. This layout is instructive, because it means the reader can see exactly where each part of the text is written on the obelisk.

Some of the ancient Egyptian names (and dates) used in the book are now considered obsolete. A few examples are provided above. Here are a few more:

* Cleopatra VI is now known as Cleopatra VII

* Psametik II is now known as Psammeticus II
* Hatasu is now known as Hatshepsut
* Usertesen I is now known as Senusret I

Otherwise, the text seems to be reliable, but there are some exceptions. For reasons of space I can only mention two of them here:

(1) On page 8 we are told that “Constantine the Great … transported a large obelisk to” Constantinople, and that “a second one, which he had begun to remove in 330, [was left] in Alexandria, until [his son] Constantius II brought it over to Constantinople in 357.”

Constantine the Great did not bring any obelisk to Constantinople, but he did move one from Karnak to Alexandria ca. 330. In 357 this obelisk was moved to Rome and erected on the spina of the Circus Maximus by Constantius II. In 1588 it was re-erected next to St. John Lateran, where it still stands today.

Constantius II moved another obelisk from Karnak to Alexandria ca. 350. In 390 Theodosius had this obelisk moved to Constantinople and erected on the spina of the hippodrome, where it still stands today.

(2) The brief biography of Queen Cleopatra on page 112 claims that she “combined with Julius Caesar in 49” – while the correct year is 48 BC – and that she “killed her son and placed her lover [Mark Antony] on the throne in 37.” In fact her son, Caesarion, who was named after Caesar, was killed in 30 BC, on the order of Octavian (Augustus).

In spite of these and other flaws this old book about the New York obelisk is still interesting and valuable. It is fortunate that it is has been reprinted in recent years, so it is still available to the general reader.

PS. For a modern account see The New York Obelisk written by Martina D’Alton and published by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1993.

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Charles Edward Moldenke,

The New York Obelisk: Cleopatra's Needle,

Anson D. F. Randolph & Company, New York, 1891,

Kessinger Legacy Reprints, 2010, 202 pages

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