Explosion destroys part of Georgia Guidestones
By AMANDA SHAW
Click here for updates on this story
ELBERTON, Georgia (WHNS) — Multiple law enforcement agencies and a bomb squad are responding to an explosion at the Georgia Guidestones.
The Guidestones, which are located along Highway 77 in Elbert County, are heavily damaged. At least one of the monoliths making up the landmark has been destroyed.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said unknown suspects detonated an explosive device around 4 a.m., destroying a large portion of the structure.
GBI’s bomb disposal unit, the Elbert County Sheriff’s Office, the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office and the Elbert County Fire Department are all on the scene of the investigation.
No suspects have been identified yet in the case. Anyone with information is asked to call the Elbert County Sheriff’s Office.
The Georgia Guidestones have been called “America’s Stonehenge.”
The granite monoliths were built in 1980 after a man using the pseudonym “Robert C. Christian” approached the president of Elbert Granite Finishing Company about commissioning them. Elberton is nicknamed the “Granite Capital of the World.”
Each piece of the 20-foot monument weighs approximately 28 tons. They are engraved in 12 different languages.
Chris Kubas, the Executive Vice President of the Elberton Granite Association, said it would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to replace the Guidestones. His organization maintains and preserves the stones.
According to ExploreGeorgia.org, the writing on the Guidestones is a “10-part message espousing the conservation of mankind and future generations.”
The Elbert County Chamber of Commerce says the English translation says:
“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 earth — leave room for nature — leave room for nature.”
The message on the Guidestones has long been a source of controversy, and this is not the first time they have been vandalized. Kandiss Taylor, a candidate who ran for Governor of Georgia this year, called for the removal of the monument claiming it is “Satanic.”
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
