Complex sentence: The 220-ton granite needle was first shifted from vertical to horizontal, nearly crashing to ground in the process, transported seven miles to Alexandria and then put into the hold of the steamship "Dessoug" which set sail June 12,1880.
Split into simpler sentences: The 220-ton granite needle was first shifted from vertical to horizontal, nearly crashing to ground in the process. Once those were resolved the obelisk was transported seven miles to Alexandria and then put into the hold of the steamship "Dessoug" which set sail June 12,1880.