What's that monolith in Wales? How it compares to the one found in a Utah canyon in 2020.
A 10-foot-tall, three-sided steel monolith, placed by unknown hands, was discovered on a hillside in Wales, U.K., on Tuesday, the latest in a series of structures that have appeared around the world.
The size and shape of the silver structure are strikingly similar to a monolith discovered in a remote area of Utah’s Red Rock Country in November 2020.
Craig Muir, a hiker on a morning walk, found the Wales monument on Hay Bluff, near Hay-on-Wye in Powys, Wales. “I thought it looked like a UFO,” he told a British publication.
Muir described it as being made of a material like surgical steel, about 10 feet high, a foot and a half wide, and “perfectly leveled and steady.”
Unlike the Utah monolith, which was metal riveted together, the Wales structure was smooth.
How do the Wales and Utah monoliths compare?
Richard Haynes, another Wales resident, said the monolith was "hollow and I imagine pretty light. Light enough for two people to carry it up and plant it in the ground," he told WalesOnline.
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Haynes said it appeared a hole had been dug to support the column.
The three-sided Utah monument, found in a slot canyon, was described as 10-12 feet high. It was made of stainless steel, Utah Department of Public Safety spokesperson Lt. Nick Street told Paste BN. It was also hollow, with plywood beneath the metal.
More: Welsh hiker says mysterious monolith on hillside 'almost looks like a UFO'
"As far as the timeline, for all we know, it could have been placed there 50, 60 years ago and because of the material it’s made out of, it hasn’t weathered – it was meant not to. It’s definitely an interesting installation."
Examination of the hole after the monolith was removed showed tools had been used to cut into the rock, the Utah Department of Public Safety said.
Monoliths and those in '2001: A Space Odyssey' movie
There was something similar between the Utah slot canyon and the spare landscapes in scenes where the "2001" monoliths appear.
Early in the movie, it's in an African plain where tribes of apes fight over meager vegetation for sustenance. Later, a monolith is discovered in a crater on the moon.
We've seen similar monoliths around the world
People have found monoliths similar to those in Wales and Utah. Some were put up as works of art, others in copycat efforts to attract attention. Where monoliths have been discovered:
2022
Phoenix: Found Jan. 31.
2020
Piatra Neamt, Romania: Found Nov. 27, removed Dec. 2.
Pine Mountain, Atascadero, Calif.: Found Dec. 3, removed Dec. 4.
Albuquerque, N.M.: Found Dec. 7, removed Dec. 7.
Oudehorne, Netherlands: Found Dec. 6.
Isle of Wight, England: Found Dec. 6.
Chia, Colombia: Found Dec. 5.
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SOURCE Paste BN Network reporting and research; The Associated Press