After standing silently in the heart of Paris for nearly two centuries, the 3,300-year-old Luxor Obelisk has revealed seven previously undocumented inscriptions—hidden messages encoded in its ancient hieroglyphs. This new discovery offers rare insights into the divine power and propaganda of Pharaoh Ramses II.
Jean-Guillaume Olette-Pelletier, an expert in hieroglyphic cryptography from the Catholic University of Paris, made the breakthrough during a restoration project in December 2021. Using scaffolding to examine the higher parts of the monument, he identified horizontally arranged hieroglyphs—a rare orientation in Egyptian inscriptions—suggesting an intentional attempt to hide their meaning from casual viewers.
Only a handful of experts worldwide possess the skillset to interpret such “three-dimensional” hieroglyphic configurations. According to Olette-Pelletier, these inscriptions contain layered messages that exalt Ramses II’s divine status and urge offerings to the god Amun.
Originally erected at Luxor Temple under Ramses II in the 13th century BCE, the obelisk was one of a pair that stood at the entrance to honor the gods and the pharaoh’s celestial mandate. In the 1830s, one of the twin monuments was gifted to France and now stands in Place de la Concorde.
One of the most fascinating inscriptions is angled to be seen by elite visitors arriving by boat during the Opet Festival, symbolically connecting Ramses to Amun’s divine life force—known as “ka”. A hidden bull horn and a rectangular glyph meaning “appease” form a subtle but powerful message: make offerings to Amun’s vital spirit.
These encoded elements, embedded in seven different spots on the obelisk’s surface, form part of a broader narrative reinforcing the legitimacy of Ramses II’s reign. Known for his architectural campaigns and long 66-year rule, Ramses used visual and textual propaganda to solidify his divine authority.
This discovery not only reveals new meanings embedded in an already well-studied monument but also demonstrates how ancient Egyptian rulers mastered the art of layered messaging—melding visual, symbolic, and spiritual language.
The findings are expected to be published in the academic journal ENiM (Égypte nilotique et méditerranéenne), providing fresh evidence that even the most familiar relics can still surprise us with hidden stories.
Cover Image Credit: Public Domain
