Munich is home to four obelisks. This one is the oldest and the only authentic one, with a history of changing locations. From its Egyptian origins, it found its way to Rome, into the world-famous collection of the aristocratic Cardinal Alessandro Albani. During the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century, it disappeared from the Villa Albani, resurfacing in Paris. Since Albani’s heirs could not afford to pay for its return to Rome, Bavarian King Ludwig I seized the opportunity to buy it. Where can this symbol of the Egyptian sun god’s petrified rays be found in Munich?
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Summer Solution: Sigi Sommer (1914–1996) was a Munich original and an institution, a gifted author and a very successful local columnist. Beginning in 1949, he spent more than 40 years observing Munich and its residents, writing over 3,500 commentaries as “Blasius, der Spaziergänger” (Blasius, the stroller) in his Abendzeitung column. The statue shows Sommer walking from Rosenstrasse to his workplace on Sendlingerstrasse as he did every day: strolling, observing his surroundings, reflecting and afterwards writing. He’s as integral a part of Munich as Weisswurst, the Frauenkirche, Oktoberfest and Schwabing.
