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L’obélisque de la Piazza Navona : étude des inscriptions hiéroglyphiques et de la traduction latine d’Athanase Kircher
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- Nowadays, the obelisk located in Piazza Navona is famous for being at the center of this must-see square in Rome, and for surmounting the spectacular Fountain of the Four Rivers, designed by the architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Like all the obelisk in Rome, the Piazza Navona’s one has a long history. This master’s thesis aims to trace this obelisk from its creation under Domitian until it was straightened in the 17th century. The first part of this research deals with the history of the obelisk during antiquity. Archaeological and philological elements will be brought together in order to develop an interpretation inspired from the socio-political context of the reign of Domitian. A translation of the hieroglyphic inscriptions is proposed. The second part of this master’s thesis focuses on the Baroque period during which the obelisk was rediscovered. At that moment, Pope Innocent X decided to restore it and to place it in the center of Piazza Navona. The obelisk, which was intended to be placed on top of a monumental fountain with a high symbolic value, was also the subject of a work, the Obeliscus Pamphilius, written by the greatest "Egyptologist" of the time: Athanasius Kircher. The latter proposes a translation and a method of deciphering the hieroglyphs that we will observe, in the light of the knowledge of the time and of modern Egyptology.