obelisk

It’s late morning and it's still a peaceful spot at this time of day - jacaranda trees fill the square, an obelisk monument sits at its centre and on the far side is the house where Pablo Picasso was born.

It’s been re-imagined for the Olympics, with temporary open-air arenas for 3 x 3 basketball, BMX freestyle, skateboarding and breaking set up around the park’s centerpiece, a 3,300-year-old granite Luxor Obelisk, gifted to France by Egypt in the 19th Century.

It’s also been home to the Luxor Obelisk for nearly 200 years.

The climb began in 1940 and the placement of an officer’s cap atop the obelisk to show they had conquered the plebe year came seven years later, according to a history of the event by James Cheevers, the former senior curator at the U.S.

It’s also been home to the Luxor Obelisk for nearly 200 years.