Said of a simple but brilliant solution to an apparently impossible problem

I think the "European City of Culture" is a simple but brilliant idea, a real stroke of genius like Columbus' egg

Ritengo che la "Città europea della cultura" sia un'idea semplice ma geniale, un vero e proprio uovo di Colombo

I struggled with the problem for so long and all of a sudden an incredibly easy solution jumped out at me. It was as plain as the nose on your face!

Dopo essermi scervellato sul problema per ore, la soluzione, facilissima, mi è balenata in testa all'improvviso: era proprio l'uovo di Colombo!

According to the popular tradition, Christopher Columbus, having been told by some noble Spaniards that discovering the Americas was no great accomplishment, challenged his critics to make an egg stand on its tip; and, after they gave up, he did it himself by tapping the egg on the table to flatten one tip. Bottom line: after the deed is done, everybody knows how to do it