Buenos Aires obelisk is a national Argentine monument, as well as the most important and best-known landmark in the city.
The tourist attraction, which is located within Plaza de la República square, on the corner of two main routes through the city, Avenida Corrientes and Avenida 9 de Julio, was constructed to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the city’s first founding.
District surrounding the monument is called ‘Punto Obelisco’, and it has been purposely-build by the city as a center for entertainment and popular culture, similarly to how Times Square functions within New York City.
PHOTO: Obelisk and the surrounding Plaza de la República square, as seen from Avenida Corrientes, which contains several Buenos Aires theater and entertainment landmarks.
PHOTO: A view up to the obelisk from the monument’s base. The memorial text within the facade of the monument reads as “Republic to the Buenos Aires IV anniversary of the city’s founding by Don Pedro de Mendoza on II February MDXXXVI”, where the roman numerals are a reference to the year 1536.
PHOTO: Punto Obelisco entertainment center buildings within the square surrounding the obelisk, resembling, with its massive advertisement boards and TV-screens, New York’s Times Square.
PHOTO: Obelisco Buenos Aires as seen from Avenida 9 de Julio, at the corner with Tte. Gral. Juan Domingo Perón street.
Construction work on the obelisk, which was designed by architect Alberto Prebisch, commenced on March 20th, 1936, with the monument being completed on May 23rd of the same year.
To make room for the monument, a church, the church of Nikolaos the Miracle Maker, was demolished from the square. The church had been famous for being the place, where, in 1812, the Argentine flag was first put on display.
Obelisco de Buenos Aires, which was build by a total of 157 workers out of concrete and white stone from Córdoba, has a height of 67.5 m.
There is a 206 step staircase to the top of the landmark. At the top, there are a total of four windows, but this section of the monument is open only for special occasions.
To get to the monument from other parts of the city, one of the quickest ways is to use the Buenos Aires subway system. Adjacent to the monument and its square, there are stations for subway lines B, C, and D.