Washington (AFP) - A mysterious granite monument in the US state of Georgia that was engraved with advice on how to protect humanity -- and which was called satanic by some critics -- has been destroyed in an explosion.
The state's Bureau of Investigation released surveillance video showing the blast in the early hours of Wednesday that brought down one of the slabs that made up the so-called Georgia Guidestones.
A second video shows a gray car leaving the scene. The rest of the monument was later demolished for safety reasons, the bureau said.
The motive for blowing up the monument in Elber County was not immediately known.
The site drew thousands of visitors annually and became the subject of right wing conspiracy theories.
Sometimes called the American Stonehenge, the nearly 20 foot high (six meter) monument was erected in 1980 and it is not known who was behind the project.
Located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) east of Atlanta, it was commissioned by a person or group using the pseudonym RC Christian.
The monument featured a 10-part message advocating protection of mankind in eight languages, said the tourism web site Explore Georgia.
The message etched into the granite said in part: "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," the Elber County Chamber of Commerce says on its website.
In the gubernatorial primary in Georgia in May, Republican candidate Kandiss Taylor called the monument satanic and made destroying it part of her platform.
"God is God all by Himself. He can do ANYTHING He wants to do," Taylor wrote on social media Wednesday after the monument was brought down. "That includes striking down Satanic Guidestones."
