It is surprising to see a 75 foot, 200 ton obelisk that is covered in ornate hieroglyphs and towers over the center of the 20 acre Place de la Concorde. Apparently, this 3200 year old treasure from a Ramses II temple was a gift from the Egyptians in 1831. It is nicknamed Cleopatra’s Needle or L’aiguille de Cléopâtre in French.