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The Georgia Guidestones were a granite monument unveiled in Elbert County, Georgia, on March 22, 1980. Four large slabs carried ten “guides” in eight languages. On July 6, 2022, an explosive device damaged much of the structure; the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the remainder was demolished for safety reasons. The monument no longer stands.

What the Georgia Guidestones were

The monument stood on a five-acre site about seven miles north of Elberton, a Georgia town known for granite. In summer 1979, a man who identified himself as R. C. Christian approached the Elberton Granite Finishing Company seeking a granite firm and a site. Company president Joe H. Fendley Sr. led the work. “R. C. Christian” was a pseudonym; the cited historical account does not establish the commissioner’s real identity. New Georgia Encyclopedia

The completed monument was about 19 feet tall overall and weighed 119 tons, according to Clay Ouzts’s New Georgia Encyclopedia entry, last edited July 11, 2022. The structure contained 951 cubic feet of granite and more than 4,000 sandblasted characters. Those figures describe the monument before its destruction.

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What was carved on the stones

The four main slabs carried ten guidelines in Arabic, Chinese, English, Hebrew, Hindi, Russian, Spanish and Swahili. The capstone bore a separate short message in Babylonian cuneiform, Egyptian hieroglyphics, Sanskrit and classical Greek. That is why descriptions commonly refer to eight languages for the ten main guides, while accounts of the whole monument identify four additional writing systems on the capstone. New Georgia Encyclopedia

The guidelines addressed governance, population and reproduction, the environment, and spirituality. Their content drew controversy and a range of interpretations. Those reactions are part of the monument’s history; they do not establish conspiracy claims made about its purpose.

How the monument was built and designed

The four main upright slabs were each more than 16 feet tall and weighed 42,137 pounds, according to the New Georgia Encyclopedia. A booklet from the Elberton Granite Association gives the uprights’ dimensions as 16 feet 4 inches high, 1 foot 7 inches thick and 6 feet 6 inches wide; the booklet’s publication date is not stated. New Georgia Encyclopedia · Elberton Granite Association

The slabs were arranged in an X pattern around a central stone, with a capstone above. Historical descriptions note astronomical features: a hole oriented toward Polaris, a slot associated with the solstices, and an aperture in the capstone that let sunlight reach the central stone at noon. These features describe the former monument’s design, not a functioning installation at the site today. New Georgia Encyclopedia

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Why the Guidestones were demolished in 2022

Around 4 a.m. on Wednesday, July 6, 2022, an explosive device damaged a large portion of the monument, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) said. No one was injured, according to the agency’s July 7 update. Responders then demolished the remaining structure for safety reasons. Georgia Bureau of Investigation, July 7, 2022

The explosion and the demolition were distinct events: the device caused major damage, and authorities subsequently removed what remained. The GBI’s release described the investigation as active and ongoing at the time. The cited accounts do not identify who planted the device, give a motive, or establish a later investigative outcome.

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What is known about the monument’s commissioner

The historical account identifies the patron only as R. C. Christian, the name he used when commissioning the work. It does not resolve his identity or establish a motive beyond the reported commission. The available account of the 2022 explosion likewise does not name the person responsible. New Georgia Encyclopedia · Georgia Bureau of Investigation, July 7, 2022

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