Obelisk of Buenos Aires

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The Obelisk of Buenos Aires (Spanish: Obelisco de Buenos Aires) is a modern monument placed at the heart of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Porteños refer to it simply as el obelisco.

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The obelisk was built in May 1936 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the founding of the city. It is located in the center of the Plaza de la República (Republic Square), the spot where the Argentine flag was flown for the first time in Buenos Aires, at the intersection of Nueve de Julio and Corrientes avenues. Its total height is 67 meters (220 feet) and its base area is 49 square meters (530 square feet). The architect in charge of its design was Alberto Prebisch. Construction took barely four weeks.

The obelisk is a main icon of the city, and a venue for cultural activities (usually sponsored by the city government) and other events. It is traditional for sports fans to gather at the place to celebrate when their favourite team wins, often resulting in very colorful events that attract media coverage. It was also used by several acrobatic troupes to perform high-wire acts, and has been the centre of a number of campaigns, including the 2005 World AIDS Day, when the monument was covered with a giant pink condom.

Throughout its history, the obelisk has suffered vandalism, especially politically-oriented graffiti. In the 1980s, an activist group broke in and spilled paint from the top windows, causing city government to erect a fence around its base. This stirred controversy, but eventually proved effective in reducing the number of defacing incidents, even though the monument is still plastered with political billboards on election campaigns and spray-painted by rowdy sports fans after a particularly important victory. These incidents are dealt with quickly, and the obelisk is usually back to normal within a day or two.

For some time during the 1970s, during the Peronist government of Isabel Martínez de Perón, a ring-shaped sign was hung around the obelisk, with the motto El silencio es salud (Silence is health). Although it was allegedly geared against motorists creating excessive noise, it was widely interpreted as a statement calling Argentines to refrain from expressing their political views.

On 01 November 2005 it was announced [1] that a comprehensive restoration, financed by the Argentine painting and restoration industry association (Ceprara), was finished. The monument was painted wih 90-micrometre acrylic paint to a "Paris stone" hue, deemed more pleasant than the previously used white.

Lines Line B, Line C, and Line D of the Buenos Aires Metro have stations in close proximity to the obelisk, and are connected by a number of underground passages with commercial galleries.

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