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The Utah Monolith Has Returned To…Well, We’re Not Sure Where, But It’s Gone

The Utah monolith has been returned to whatever species created it.

Modeled after the more famous monolith from the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey, this latest version was recently discovered in the red rocks desert in southeastern Utah. Like its cinematic cousin, its origin was murky and the cause of much speculation, particularly among fans of the Stanley Kubrick film and the Arthur C. Clarke books.

But the ten-foot tall, silver metal monolith in Utah has now disappeared, the state’s Bureau of Land Management said Saturday. It was removed by an “unknown party” sometime Friday night, the agency said in a Facebook post.

“We have received credible reports that the illegally installed structure, referred to as the ‘monolith,’ has been removed” from BLM public lands, the post said. “The BLM did not remove the structure, which is considered private property.”

The Utah monolith was first discovered November 18 by officers from the Utah Department of Public Safety’s Aero Bureau. They spotted it while on a mission to count bighorn sheep in southeastern Utah. Its location was initially concealed, as authorities were concerned about inexperienced hikers getting stuck in the remote landscape and requiring rescue.

However, the coordinates were soon circulating on the internet, and one veteran hiker decided to go see. His report on it went viral.

In the novels and films which sparked the massive interest in the Utah structure, three monoliths are discovered. The best-known appears at the beginning of 2001: A Space Odyssey, discovered by mankind’s ape-like ancestors. The monolith somehow triggers a leap in evolution.

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