'Mysterious monolith' found in desert near Vegas: 'HOW did it get up there?'
A "mysterious monolith," similar to ones that have been popping up around the world since 2020, was spotted near Las Vegas over the weekend, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said.
The long, reflective slab of metal was discovered over the weekend by Las Vegas Metro Search and Rescue near Gass Peak, about an hour north of Las Vegas, the LVMPD said in a post on Facebook Monday.
"We see a lot of weird things when people go hiking like not being prepared for the weather, not bringing enough water… but check this out," the department said in its post, alongside photos of the column. "HOW did it get up there??"
The LVMPD also used the post to remind the public to exercise caution and stay safe "when enjoying our incredible outdoors."
This is the second time, the prism-like monolith was seen in the Las Vegas area. A similar one was seen in the city's Fremont Street in December 2020.
Meanwhile, monoliths with different finishes, have popped up in various cities around the world since 2020, with different groups and individuals attempting to take some credit for placing the objects.
Fridays in Vegas always bring surprises. Did anyone call this one? #Monolith pic.twitter.com/BRVhITrlpX
— Circa Las Vegas (@CircaLasVegas) December 4, 2020
Monoliths found around the world
Utah
The first unexplained metal monolith was discovered in Utah's remote Red Rock Country in November of 2020. The Utah Department of Public Safety announced the discovery of the monolith by the DPS's Aero Bureau and the Utah Division of Wildlife on November 23.
By the 27th the monolith had been removed.
The Most Famous Artist — an artist collective in New Mexico — suggested that it may have had a hand in the monolith's creation when it attempted to sell the piece.
"I'm here to say: I didn't do the monolith, but I didn't not do the monolith," the collective's founder, artist Matty Mo, said in a December 2020 Instagram Live with art podcaster Heidi Zuckerman. "I am both the originator and the guy who is just capitalizing on it as a result of the artifacts that were created to seed the story which propagated the myth."
California
Multiple monoliths also appeared in California in 2020.
A monolith was discovered on a hiking trail in Atascadero, Southern California, in December 2020, but disappeared the next day. Four men took credit for erecting the Atascadero monolith: Travis Kenney, Randall Kenney, Wade McKenzie and Jared Riddle, according to The New York Times.
Another monolith connected to The Most Famous Artist appeared by Joshua Tree National Park days after the Atascadero sightings. Mo said that "all monoliths are with collectors."
United Kingdom
A similar sculpture to the one found in Utah was spotted in December of 2020 on the Isle of Wight's Compton Beach, located off the southern coast of England.
A different monolith was found on Glastonbury Tor, a hill near the southwesternEnglish town of the same name. That sculpture had the words "Not Banksy" etched into one side as well as a picture of a rat in the style of the street artist Banksy.
Most recently, in March earlier this year, a hiker in Wales, Craig Muir, discovered an approximately 10-foot monolith near Hay-on-Wye during a regular hike.
"I come up here most days and I've never seen this before," Muir had said. "It almost looks like a UFO."
Contributing: James Powel, USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Monolith found in Las Vegas desert raises questions again about origin
