The Unfinished Obelisk unearthed at Aswan, Egypt, is 42 metres long with a pyramidal shape on top, weighing 1100 tons. Attempts to carve it out of the bedrock of granite, had to be abandoned when few cracks were noticed in the granite. The Unfinished Obelisk offers unusual insights into ancient Egyptian stone-working techniques. The means of separating the stone from the bedrock is by making small cavities in the stone, then filling them with wood and soaking them in water causing it to expand. The Egyptian government has announced the place as an open museum to preserve these structures as archaeological treasures of the country.
Unfinished Obelisk
