Obelisk of Theodosius

The Obelisk of Theodosius stands at the centre of Sultanahmet Square in Istanbul and is now the oldest standing structure in the city. Pharaoh Thutmose III had the monolith of red Aswan granite carved in the 15th century BC for the Temple of Karnak. Emperor Theodosius I brought the upper third to Constantinople around AD 390 and set it on the spina of the Hippodrome as the centrepiece of the chariot races. The Late Antique marble pedestal carved for the obelisk shows Theodosius himself watching the games from the tribune in four reliefs and ranks among the most important late Roman relief works. Roughly 19.6 metres tall in total, it presides today over the long oval square that still traces the outline of the Hippodrome between Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque.