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The '''Philae obelisk''' is one of two [[obelisk]]s found at [[Philae]] in [[Upper Egypt]] in 1815. It was soon afterward acquired by [[William John Bankes]], which included an important [[bilingual inscription]].
He noted two [[inscription]]s on it, one in [[Ancient Egyptian language|Egyptian]] [[Egyptian Hieroglyphics|hieroglyphs]], and the other in [[Ancient Greek language|ancient Greek]].<ref>The Greek inscription has been referred to by scholars as "OGI 137–139; SB 8396; Lenger, C. Ord. Ptol., 51 f.; A. Bern., 19".</ref> By comparing the two texts, although they were not translations of one another, Bankes believed that he recognised the names ''Ptolemy'' and ''Cleopatra'' in hieroglyphic characters. His identification was confirmed afterward by [[Thomas Young (scientist)|Thomas Young]] and [[Jean-François Champollion]], and the obelisk was useful to Champollion in his eventual [[decipherment of Egyptian hieroglyphs]].{{citation needed|date = June 2015}}
The inscriptions record a petition by the [[Ancient Egyptian religion|Egyptian priests]] at Philae and the favourable response by [[Ptolemy VIII of Egypt|Ptolemy VIII Euergetes]] and queens [[Cleopatra II of Egypt|Cleopatra II]] and [[Cleopatra III of Egypt|Cleopatra III]]. The obelisk has been dated to approximately 118 or 117 BC.{{citation needed|date = June 2015}}
During the 1820s, Bankes acquired the obelisk found at Philae and had it transported to his estate at [[Kingston Lacy]] in Dorset, England. The operation was carried out by the noted adventurer [[Giovanni Belzoni]]. The house and estate were bequeathed to the [[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]] and the obelisk is located in the gardens.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/kingston-lacy/history/ |title=Kingston Lacy - History |publisher=National Trust |accessdate=2015-07-17}}</ref> The obelisk is a Grade II* [[listed building]].<ref>{{NHLE |num=1323828 |desc=Obelisk 140m south west of Kingston Lacy House |accessdate=20 July 2015 }}</ref>
In October and November 2014, Ben Altshuler of the [[Institute for Digital Archaeology]], in association with [[Alan Bowman]] and Charles Crowther of Oxford's Centre for the Study of Ancient Documents (CSAD), made [[Reflectance Transformation Imaging|RTI scans]] of the obelisk. They observed significant, previously illegible Egyptian and Greek inscriptions.<ref>http://www.space.com/27835-philae-obelisk-and-lander-revealing-secrets-with-digital-tech.html)</ref><ref name="digitalarchaeology.org.uk">http://digitalarchaeology.org.uk/projects</ref>
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