NEEDLES OF CLEOPATRA.
"Cleopatra's needles" call two obelisks of red granite, erected in front of the sun temple in the reign of Tuthmosis III (1503-1450 BC), in ancient Egyptian city of Heliopolis more than 3300 years ago. In14 year BC the Emperor Augustus moved them to Alexandria.
Sometimes to these monuments rank third "needle" - the obelisk on Assembly square in Paris, but this obelisk, although it also is Egyptian, has another origin and is made of pink granite.
Obelisks in height over 20 meters and in weight about 200 tons, covered with hieroglyphics, glorying the Egyptian Gods.
Although "Cleopatra's Needles" are genuine ancient Egyptian obelisks to famous Queen known that she wanted a life for a night of love, they have no relationship.
Initially, the obelisks were set in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis by the order of Thutmose III around 1450 BC. In their manufacture was used granite from the quarries of Aswan, located close to the first threshold of Nile. Inscriptions were added 200 years later by Ramesses II to commemorate his military victories.
The obelisk in Alexandria
In 1819, the obelisk was presented to the UK by Mehemea Ali, Viceroy of Egypt, a native of Albania, in honour of Lord Nelson victories at the battle near Aboukir in 1798 and Sir Ralph, Abercromby at the battle near Alexandria in 1801. Although the British government accepted the gift, it refused to finance the transportation of the obelisk in London.
Therefore, up to 1877 the obelisk remained in Alexandria until Sir James Erasmus Wilson, a prominent British anatomist and dermatologist, did not fund transportation for 10000 pounds (a considerable amount of money at that time). At the same time, the English General James Alexander, apparently taking into consideration the successes of French in pilfer of Egyptian monuments, decided that Britain should not lag behind continental enemy, and entrusted to the English engineer John Dixon, who was then in Egypt, to solve the problem of the obelisk transportation.
The whole project nearly wrecked the catastrophe that occurred on October 14, 1877, In this day of "Cleopatra" got into a violent storm in the Bay of Biscay, and then were killed 6 members of the crew. The remaining five sailors on board of"Cleopatra"
On arrival to port Buse reported that Cleopatra was drowning and was abandoned. However, as turned out, the pontoon did not sink and remained afloat. After four days it was found by Spanish fishermen. A little later the Scottish steamer "Fitsmoris towed pontoon to the Spanish port of Ferrol.
The owner of "Fitsmoris" first demanded for "Cleopatra" redemption in the amount of 5000 pounds, but eventually agreed on two ones. For obelisk was immediately sent wheeled tug "England” under command of captain David Glu, who delivered"Cleopatra" in London on January 21, 1878
More in detail on the delivery of London’s obelisk, see wonderful photo-study of the author dimdim1979.
On the sides of London’s "Cleopatra's Needles" lies two pseudo - Egyptian Sphinxes, cast in bronze on which also there are hieroglyphic inscriptions on Egyptian language - "Good God, Thutmose III, gave life". When installing Sphinxes builders made a mistake and put them face-to-obelisk, while protecting the Sphinxes (which they were thought) should look along both sides of the obelisk.
In the foundation of the obelisk, apparently in homage to the great antiquity of the monument they laid a capsule of "time" in the hope that sometime in the future, archaeologists will dig obelisk again.
This message to descendants consists of the characteristic items of nineteenth century, in which were included; a set of coins, razors, four texts of Bible on different languages, schedule of trains and 12 photos of English beauties.
On September 4, 1917, during one of the first bombing of London, a German bomb fell close to the obelisk and touched it a little with splinters. In memory of this event, the damages were not restored, and holes with cracks from shrapnel are still visible on the right Sphinx. In 2005 was carried out a restoration of the obelisk.
On the embankment of Thames you can find other elements of Egyptian decor, for example, winged sphinxes, decorate the handle of the benches.
Around the same time when on Bedloe's island was erected the statue of Liberty, in central park of New York appeared a real ancient Egyptian obelisk. This obelisk is the native brother of London’s and is one of two once stood in Heliopolis, and then transported to Alexandria. After 1800 years it in the end, was delivered to New York.
As in case with the statue of Liberty and with the London’s obelisk all complex transport operation from beginning to end was conducted by masons. The project manager was a naval engineer Henry Honychurch Gorringe dedicated to Freemasonry in New York in Anglo-Saxon Lodge No. 137.
Even Martin d’Alton, who wrote a special article about New York obelisk for the Metropolitan Museum of art, could not ignore this fact: "Masons had a strong lobby in New York. Almost everyone who participated in delivery of obelisk to America were members of Masonic lodges - Gorring, Schroeder, Vanderbild and Hurlbert, and also mayor, the police commissioner and other city policies..." - she writes.
Apparently, the original idea of obelisk delivery to New York came from the Egyptian Khedive Ismail. Convenient case presented during the opening of the Suez canal ceremony in 1869. Being close to William Holberton, chief editor of newspaper "The New York world", Khedive suddenly said that he would like to present the obelisk as a gift to the U.S. government. Hurlbert interpreted this gesture as a polite "masonic handshake" from the part of the Khedive, who was also a Freemason.
Actually masonic influence spread even further. A few months before the opening of Suez canal uncle of Khedive Ismail, prince Halim Pasha was elected as master of the masonic order of Memphis, practicing pseudo-rituals with the system of 92 higher degrees". Halim Pasha was also the official master of Egyptian lodge of the Grand Orient.
Henry Goring arrived at Egypt in October 1879 with his colleague lieutenant Seaton Schroeder, to engage with transportation of the obelisk. The Khedive entrusted to French Salvatore Zola (who succeeded Prince Halima Pasha on the post of master of Memphis order in 1874) transfer of a gift to Americans. According to eyewitnesses, when Goring lowered the obelisk on the sandy beach of Alexandria, the audience embraced with the strong excitement.
Many masons have noticed "masonic emblems" - trowel and square of architect carved on the base of the ancient pedestal. Gorring was affected by the symbolism and decided to bring a ladder and a pedestal in the New world, where they will be assembled in exactly the same form".
It should be probably mentioned that in a few years a new discovery "waited" Gorringe. He was convinced that he had discovered Atlantis in the Azores, when he worked in hydrographic office of the United States in 1876. U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant even sent him a personal message of congratulation in connection with this "discovery".
More in detail about delivery of New York’s obelisk read in the second part of the photo-research dimdim1979.
The obelisk was finally delivered to New York, on October 9, 1880 procession of 9000 masons passed along the Fifth Avenue to the sounds of orchestra for the ceremony of cornerstone laying". On a ceremony held on the next day, Jesse B. Anthony, master of the New York Freemasonry, "tied the origins of Freemasonry with Ancient Egypt."
The ceremony of laying the cornerstone of the monument in May 1923 carried out President Coolidge himself, using the same trowel, which was used by George Washington 130 years ago, when he laid the cornerstone of the Capitol in Washington.
Thus, a memorial of George Washington in the American Alexandria is the third of the most important masonic monuments in the USA, along with the statue of Liberty and the New York’s obelisk, openly emphasizing the connection with ancient Egyptian Alexandria the city, which in ancient times was inextricably linked with the Pharos lighthouse and the goddess Isis-Faria.
In 2006, Zahi Hawass, the head of the Supreme Council by Egyptian antiquities, demanded from New York mayor Michael Bloomberg to restore the ancient obelisk erected in the central park of the city,
Such familiar to Parisians Egyptian obelisk, which they also call "Cleopatra's Needle", stands on the square de La Concorde. Ironically, it also separated from its twin brother, which still stands at the entrance to Luxor temple.
In Paris obelisk appeared in the 1830 due to will the same Khedive of Egypt, Mohammed Ali, who gifted it to France. The Luxor obelisk is the most ancient monument of the French capital.
In the early of 19th century, both obelisk guarded the entrance to the Luxor Temple. But in August, 1832, the French Corvette "Sphinx" went to Alexandria to meet with barge "Luxor" to pick up one of the obelisks and to take it to France. On April 1, 1833 both vessels headed to Toulon and reached it on May 10. On12 August the ships entered the port of city Cherbourg.
On December 21, the obelisk was brought to Paris. 3 years later, on October 25, 1836, by decree of king Louis Philippe I the obelisk was placed in the center of the square de La Concorde. The second obelisk remained in Luxor.
The rejection from it was officially addressed to Egyptian government only by French President Francois Mitterrand during his first presidential mandate.
The Alexander column in St-Petersburg. Now compare weight of Paris obelisk with weight of Alexander column in St. Petersburg almost 700 tons, installed (officially) a century earlier, and you will understand what advanced technologies were in the "wild" Russia in the early 18th century.
The emergence of Alexander column on Palace square, raises a lot of questions of modern researchers both purely technical and historical. But now not about it.
St. Petersburg, as mentioned above capitals also has a direct connection with ancient Egypt. The famous Sphinxes on Neva river are true masterpieces of ancient sculptors, and obelisks in St. Petersburg and in surrounding areas are not counted. One of them is obelisk to memorial floods is also installed on the seafront.
It turns out that in St-Petersburg there are two real Sphinxes and not true obelisk, and in London, on the contrary, there is real obelisk, and two not real Sphinxes.
Practically through London passes modern zero meridian Greenwich, and near St. Petersburg passed Pulkovo meridian
The distance from New York Cleopatra's Needle to London along the Earth's surface is 5578 km or exactly 50 degrees. Line New York - the Great pyramid is tangent to the 50th latitude, and obelisk itself in central park is oriented to intersection of GP meridian and Equator.
About the relationship of Washington of modern Atlantis with Egypt is better to read in the same article, Jim Allison, "NEW ATLANTIS". You can also remember that Washington, as St.- Petersburg was founded by the strong-willed decision of one particular person at a specified place.
And this place is located exactly in the center of the equilateral triangle formed with Teotihuacan, antipode of Uluru and point of Tiwanaku, symmetric to real Tiwanaku. See article "SYSTEM OF TRIANGLES."
The angular distance along the line between Washington and St-Petersburg is 65° or 13/36 from the half of length of all circumference, on which lies Mohenjo-Daro the most important point of Giza triangles.
There is another Egyptian obelisk in Europe, which can be called "Cleopatra's Needle", since, according to Pliny it also comes from Heliopolis. Later, the obelisk stood on the Forum of Julia Alexandria in Egypt, and then got in Rome.
In 37 year, during the reign of Emperor Caligula obelisk from Egypt was moved to Rome, where it was installed in the center of Nero Circus. The obelisk remained in its place, and after the desolation of the Circus, and during creation of necropolis there and later the construction of ancient St. Peter Basilica. During the reign of Pope Nicholas V (about 1450) they wanted to move obelisk to St. Peter square but because of its enormous sizes and weight, making of this event failed.
Only 150 years later, more energetic Pope Sixtus V in 1586 managed to move the obelisk. Under the guidance of architect Domenico Fontana obelisk was transported and installed in the center of the square before St. Peter's Cathedral.
Installation of the obelisk in the center of the square was scheduled on 10 September 1586. First obelisk was placed and fixed on the monolith, and then with special facilities equipped with winches and pulleys they laid it on the ground. Operation, for which took 900 workers, 140 horses and 44 winch was led by Domenico Fontana.
All entrances to the square are blocked to onlookers and curious crowd under penalty of death banned from making any sounds. Orders were given by horn, drums and signal flags. The obelisk slowly and gently began to raised on pedestal, but during lifting its supporting ropes suddenly weakened and there was a danger of obelisk collapse. Everybody was frozen in horror and deathly silence... In this moment, in violation of the prohibition, there was a voice from the crowd: - “Pour the water on the ropes!”
It was a captain of ship by the name of Domenico Breska from San Remo, who from his experience knew that when the ropes are wet, they tighten together. So the obelisk was saved and installed, and captain Breska was caused to Pope. He praised the captain and asked how he could thank him. In response, the captain asked for permission to bring to Vatican branches of palm trees in Palm Sunday, which precedes to Easter. This privilege was given to him. And according to the legend, the descendants of captain Breska still deliver to Vatican palms.
According to another legend in the ball at the top of the obelisk was once the dust of Caesar. But the winds of centuries for millennia probably blew it out, as at moving the obelisk discovered there nothing but the dust of the town. The ball, however, was placed in the Capitoline Museums, and in its place was erected the cross.
The obelisk in Vatican is the only obelisk, which was not damaged. Its height is 25.50 meters, along with a pedestal and a cross on the top is 41 meters.
The place in Vatican, where obelisk is installed has very interesting properties.
Moreover. The angular distance from the obelisk to Easter island is 130°. The distance from Vatican city to Washington DC is 7232 km or equal to 65°, which is as much as from Washington to St. Petersburg. Therefore, the city of Washington is equidistant from Vatican and St. Petersburg and, if we add these two distances, we will get the distance from Vatican city to Easter island.
Paris obelisk did not remain aloof from its fellows. The distance from Alexander pillar to obelisk in London is 2105 km, or 19 degrees. The distance from the column to obelisk in Paris - 2170 km or 19.5 degrees. Thus, Paris and London almost are equidistant from St. Petersburg and the distance between them is close to the value of 20°.
Besides, the distance between London and Paris is 341 miles or exactly 3 degrees - 1/120 of a circle. To Vatican from Paris are 1107 km or exactly 10 degrees along the arc of a circle.
It should be said that many ancient and more modern capitals do not lose connection of times and also are marked with "Cleopatra's Needles".
Thus, the "Cleopatra's Needles", having moved from Egypt to certain places on the planet, has not lost a mysterious connection between them. And most likely, they continue to perform their original functions, noting the old and new points of monumental structures system.