Elbert County Georgia
[edit]HistoryIn June 1979, an unknown person or persons under the pseudonym R. C. Christian hired Elberton Granite Finishing Company to build the structure.[2] One popular hypothesis is that the author pseudonym may be a tribute to the legendary 14th-century founder of Rosicrucianism, Christian Rosenkreuz.[2] A popular opinion holds that the owner of the Elberton Finishing Company, Mr Joe H. Fendley Sr, built the monument in order to express his own beliefs and at the same time promote the local granite businesses. As stated at the end of a booklet published by his company in 1981, a minimum of further 12 stones could be built if a group of 'conservation-minded' sponsors willing to pay the price could be found. Page 39 of the booklet states that Fendley is a high-ranking Freemason.[citation needed] [edit]InscriptionsA message consisting of a set of ten guidelines or principles is engraved on the Georgia Guidestones in eight different languages, one language on each face of the four large upright stones. Moving clockwise around the structure from due north, these languages are: English, Spanish, Swahili, Hindi, Hebrew, Arabic, Chinese, and Russian.
[edit]Explanatory tabletA few feet to the west of the artifact, an additional granite ledger has been set level with the ground. This tablet identifies the structure and the languages used on it, lists various facts about the size, weight, and astronomical features of the stones, the date it was installed, and the sponsors of the project. It also speaks of a time capsule buried under the tablet, but the positions on the stone reserved for filling in the dates on which the capsule was buried and is to be opened are missing, so it is not clear whether the time capsule was ever put in place. Each side of the tablet is perpendicular to one of the cardinal directions, and is inscribed so that the northern edge is the "top" of the inscription. The complete text of the explanatory tablet is detailed below. The accompanying image shows the overall layout. The tablet is somewhat inconsistent with respect to punctuation, and also misspells "pseudonym". The original spelling, punctuation, and line breaks in the text have been preserved in the transcription which follows. At the center of each tablet edge is a small circle, each containing a letter representing the appropriate compass direction (N, S, E, W). At the top center of the tablet is written:
Immediately below this is the outline of a square, inside which is written:
Around the edges of the square are written the names of four ancient languages, one per edge. Starting from the top and proceeding clockwise, they are: On the left side of the tablet is the following column of text:
The words appear as shown under the time capsule heading; no dates are engraved. [edit]Physical dataOn the right side of the tablet is the following column of text:
[edit]Guidestone languagesBelow the two columns of text is written the caption: GUIDESTONE LANGUAGES The names of eight modern languages are inscribed along the long edges of the projecting rectangles, one per edge. Starting from due north and moving clockwise around so that the upper edge of the northeast rectangle is listed first, they are: At the bottom center of the tablet is the following text:
[edit]Astronomical featuresThe four outer stones are oriented based on the Sun's yearly migration. The center column features a hole through which the North Star can be seen regardless of time, as well as a slot that is aligned with the Sun's solstices and equinoxes. A 7/8" aperture in the capstone allows a ray of sun to pass through at noon each day, shining a beam on the center stone indicating the day of the year.[2] [edit]LocationThe Georgia Guidestones are located on a hilltop in Elbert County, Georgia, approximately 90 miles (140 km) east of Atlanta, 45 miles (72 km) from Athens, and 9 miles (14 km) north of the center of Elberton. The stones are standing on a rise a short distance to the east of Georgia Highway 77 (Hartwell Highway), and are visible from that road. Small signs beside the highway indicate the turnoff for the Guidestones, which is identified by a street sign as "Guidestones Rd." It is located on the highest point in Elbert County. [edit]OwnershipThe ownership of the site is unclear. According to the Georgia Mountain Travel Association's detailed history: "The Georgia Guidestones are located on the farm of Mildred and Wayne Mullenix..."[4] The Elbert County land registration system shows what appears to be the Guidestones as County land purchased on October 1, 1979. [5][6] The monument was unveiled in March 1980, with the presence of 100 people.[7] Another account specifices the 22nd of March and said 400 people attended. [2] [edit]ReactionsYoko Ono and others have praised the inscribed messages as "a stirring call to rational thinking", while opponents have labeled them as the "Ten Commandments of the Antichrist".[2] The Guidestones have become a subject of interest for conspiracy theorists. One of them, an activist named Mark Dice, demanded that the Guidestones "be smashed into a million pieces, and then the rubble used for a construction project",[8] claiming that the Guidestones are of "a deep Satanic origin," and that R. C. Christian, belongs to "a Luciferian secret society" related to the New World Order.[2] At the unveiling of the monument, a local minister proclaimed that he believed the monument was "for sun worshipers, for cult worship and for devil worship".[7] Another popular conspiracy theorist, Alex Jones, in his 2008 documentary 'Endgame: Elite's Blueprint For Global Enslavement' highlights "the message of the mysterious Georgia Guidestones, purportedly built by representatives of a secret society called the Rosicrucian Order, which call for a global religion, world courts, and for population levels to be maintained at around 500 million, over a 5.5 billion reduction from current levels. The stones infer that humans are a cancer upon the earth and should be culled in order to maintain balance with nature."[9] In 2008, the stones were defaced with polyurethane paint and graffiti with slogans such as "Death to the new world order."[10] Wired magazine called the defacement "the first serious act of vandalism in the Guidestones' history".[2] As of November 14, 2009, the stones bear a variety of graffiti. The vandalism has yet to be repaired; moreover, it is unclear whose responsibility undertaking such repairs should be. [edit]See also[edit]Notes
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