Hopkins tries a more straightforward method. He relies on the simplest of all tools that the Egyptians might have used to raise an obelisk: grains of sand.
Hopkins has buried the obelisk's pedestal stone under 22 tons of sand within a brick-walled container, which he plans to empty out by hand. Slowly, the edge of the obelisk's base descends into the place it belongs: the pedestal stone's turning groove. The men use ropes to pull the obelisk into its upright position.