Located on the intersection between the 9 de Julio and Corrientes avenues, the work was inaugurated on May 23, 1936, at the site where the San Nicolás de Bari Church is located, in the tower of which the country’s flag was first hoisted in 1812.

Built in 1733, the church was torn down nearly 200 years later to then give way to the road popularly known as Diagonal Norte.

The Obelisk was erected in its place. It was built to commemorate the fourth centennial of the capital’s establishment.

The piece was commissioned to architect Alberto Prebisch (1899-1970), one of the nation’s main modernists.

The monument is 67.5 meters high; its base is 6.8 meters on each side and includes an entrance door behind which there is a marine staircase of 206 steps, which leads to the top.

From this viewpoint, people can have a unique look at the city, but admission is only possible on special occasions.

The Obelisk’s location turns it into the center of the city’s life and a protagonist in many events.

Besides joining the main avenues in Buenos Aires, it’s a cultural, historic, and political site, since tourist events and celebrations are held in its surroundings, but it’s also a point of arrival or encounter of demonstrations called by social organizations and unions which demand respect for their rights and equality.

Taken from Orbe

By Glenda Arcia, Chief Correspondent/Buenos Aires

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