A mysterious stone monument in the US state of Georgia was partially destroyed in what is believed to be a bombing incident, with the remainder demolished later by a backhoe, local media outlets reported Wednesday.
Known as the Georgia Guidestones, this mysterious monument has been dubbed by many as "America's Stonehenge," likening it to the similarly enigmatic Stonehenge statue in the United Kingdom.
However, the explosion believed to be a bombing took place early Wednesday morning, destroying one of the monument's six stone slabs and damaging another one.
Footage of the explosion was later shared online by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI).
(2/3) The videos show the explosion and a car leaving the scene shortly after the explosion. No one was injured. pic.twitter.com/8YNmEML9fW
— GA Bureau of Investigation (@GBI_GA) July 6, 2022
Several hours later, a backhoe was used to level the rest of them.
According to the GBI, this was due to safety concerns.
(3/3) For safety reasons, the structure has been completely demolished. pic.twitter.com/hrpqN2Sphr
— GA Bureau of Investigation (@GBI_GA) July 6, 2022
Fittingly for a structure long shrouded in mystery, the culprit behind the bombing remains unknown.
"God is God all by Himself. He can do ANYTHING He wants to do. That includes striking down the Satanic Guidestones."
Kandiss Taylor
What are the Georgia Guidestones?
The Guidestones themselves were a strange 5.87-meter-tall monument erected in Georgia's Elbert County in 1980. It consisted of six stone slabs made of granite. Four of the slabs were arranged in a formation around another one in the center, with a capstone on top of them connecting them all together.
On these stones were writings in a variety of languages, specifically English, Spanish, Hebrew, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Hindi and Swahili – it was the slab with the latter two that was destroyed in the bombing before the rest were demolished.
These writings all contained the same message, a list of 10 "guidelines" which consisted of the following:
- Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.
- Guide reproduction wisely – improving fitness and diversity.
- Unite humanity with a living new language.
- Rule passion – faith – tradition – and all things with tempered reason.
- Protect people and nations with fair laws and just courts.
- Let all nations rule internally resolving external disputes in a world court.
- Avoid petty laws and useless officials.
- Balance personal rights with social duties.
- Prize truth – beauty – love – seeking harmony with the infinite.
- Be not a cancer on the Earth – Leave room for nature – Leave room for nature.
Nearby was an additional rock, referred to by many as an explanatory tablet, which included the name of the monument, the date of its unveiling, a number of details regarding astronomic features, authors, sponsors, a time capsule (which is debated if it even exists) and a message reading "Let these be guidestones to an Age of Reason."
As noted by the state tourist website ExploreGeorgia.org, the Guidestones also function as an astronomical calendar, arranged to let sunlight shine through a narrow hole in the structure daily at noon to illuminate the date on an engraving.
The purpose of the Guidestones themselves is unclear and is just as mysterious as the story behind their construction.
The Georgia Guidestones are known to have been built by the Elberton Granite Finishing Company at the behest of a man identified as Robert C. Christian, something explicitly credited in the explanatory tablet to be an alias. Christian also represented an unknown organization that has only been identified as "a small group of loyal Americans" that wanted the structure built.
Nothing is truly known about the Guidestones or this mysterious organization that wanted them built, though one documentary in 2015 credits a white supremacist doctor who supported the Ku Klux Klan, though the veracity of this is unclear.
Due to the mystery surrounding them, the Georgia Guidestones have been associated with conspiracy theories. This includes infamous US conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who once referred to them as a sign of the mission of a shadowy group of elites to control everything.
I am the ONLY candidate bold enough to stand up to the Luciferian Cabal.Elect me Governor of Georgia, and I will bring the Satanic Regime to its knees— and DEMOLISH the Georgia Guidestones.Join me in my fight to #TearThemDown!Contribute: https://t.co/nvrU2idhNX pic.twitter.com/yoFWeNXUpM
— Kandiss Taylor (@KandissTaylor) May 2, 2022
In May 2022, Georgia governor primary candidate Kandiss Taylor vowed to destroy them should she get elected, claiming they represented a "Satanic Regime" and "Luciferian Cabal," but destroying the Guidestones would be an act of resistance.
God is God all by Himself. He can do ANYTHING He wants to do. That includes striking down Satanic Guidestones.
— Kandiss Taylor (@KandissTaylor) July 6, 2022
Later, after their destruction, Taylor tweeted "God is God all by Himself. He can do ANYTHING He wants to do. That includes striking down the Satanic Guidestones."
Reuters contributed to this report.