Jean-Francois Champollion

Though few onlookers have ever noticed, the famed golden-topped obelisk at the center of Place de la Concorde in Paris has stood without a tip for nearly 200 years - until June 20.

In a ceremony attended by VIPs, a trainee craftworker showed no signs of vertigo as she placed a new gold-plated point atop the 3,000-year-old monument, which was gift to France from Egypt in 1830.

For decades, Egyptians have dreamed of bringing back some of the glories of their ancient civilization scattered across museums and private collections across the world.