Three sections of the Ethiopian obelisk stolen by Mussolini’s troops in 1937 and repatriated last year, are to be re-erected in Axum, more than one year after their return to their land of origin, UNESCO announced on Tuesday.

"The reinstallation of the stele will commence at the end of the rainy season, towards the month of October and should be completed by the end of December 2006," Francesco Bandarin, Director of UNESCO’s World Heritage centre, announced to the Addis Ababa press.

The cost of the entire operation amounts to $4 million dollars (€3.4 million) and will be financed exclusively by the Italian government, he stated.

After having been dismantled into three sections in January 2005 in Rome, the obelisk, weighing more than 150 tonnes, was returned to Ethiopia last April at a cost of $4.2 million (€3.5 million).

The funeral stele, at a height of 24 metres, was removed to Italy in 1937, during the conquest of Ethiopia by Mussolini’s troops. Following its removal by the Italians, Addis Ababa repeatedly called for the return of this important historic relic, a testimony to the great past of the Axum civilisation which, from the 3rd century before Jesus Christ to the 8th century, was prominent in the region.

The stelae of Axum form part of the seven sites in Ethiopia, classed as World Heritage sites by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).

"It is a monument that represents more than 2,000 years of history...This is not only a piece of granite to be reconstructed, it is a quite unique operation that has never previously been attempted", added Mr Bandarin, who also noted that site was extremely fragile.

An important royal tomb, dating from before Jesus Christ, has recently been discovered under the site where the obelisk is to be rebuilt. The site preparation works should begin in March to strengthen the foundations of the stele and to build an access ramp. The three pieces of the stele will then be hauled onto the ramp, then set one on top of the other, using a special crane. UNESCO will be supervising the entire operation.

"This is the largest monument ever returned to its country of origin...It is a quite unique operation", asserted the UNESCO representative in Ethiopia, Aawad Elhassan.

French film-maker Laurent Védrine has produced a film on the history of the obelisk and the campaign for its repatriation to Ethiopia. The film will be shown on the French channel ARTE in June, on TV5, and on three other satellite channels. There will be a public projection in a cinema in Paris in the presence of tutors and scholars from EHESS, France’s most prestigious history/sociology university.

ENDS

For further information please contact the press office on 020 7838 3880.