# 2020 Metal Monoliths
> 2020 Metal Monoliths are mysterious shiny triangular pillars appearing in remote locations worldwide from November 2020, spawning copycat installations, alien conspiracy memes, and 2001: A Space Odyssey references.
The 2020 Metal Monoliths were a series of mysterious metal pillars that appeared in remote locations around the world starting in November 2020, beginning with a shiny triangular prism discovered in the Utah desert during a routine bighorn sheep count. The sightings triggered a global wave of copycat installations, alien conspiracy jokes, and *2001: A Space Odyssey* references that dominated social media for weeks. Artists collective The Most Famous Artist later claimed credit for the original US installations, but by then the monolith craze had already spread to over 200 locations worldwide[5].
## Origin
On November 18, 2020, a helicopter crew from the Utah Department of Public Safety's Aero Bureau was helping the Division of Wildlife Resources count bighorn sheep in southeastern Utah when they spotted something bizarre below: a metal pillar standing upright in a red rock slot canyon[1]. Pilot Bret Hutchings told local news station KSL TV, "That's been about the strangest thing that I've come across out there in all my years of flying"[10].
The DPS posted photos to Instagram on November 20, noting the object was "buried deep in the rock" in "the middle of nowhere"[3]. Officials declined to share the exact location, warning that the terrain was so remote that visitors could "become stranded and require rescue"[1]. The agency also noted, with dry humor, that "it is illegal to install structures or art without authorization on federally managed public lands, no matter what planet you're from"[1].
Google Earth satellite imagery later revealed the monolith had been installed sometime between August 2015 and October 2016, meaning it sat unnoticed in the desert for roughly four years before anyone stumbled across it[4].
- **Platform:** Instagram (Utah DPS post), Twitter / Reddit (viral spread)
- **Creator:** The Most Famous Artist / Matty Mo (claimed credit for US monoliths), various unknown copycats (global installations)
- **Date:** 2020
## Overview
The 2020 Metal Monoliths refer to a string of tall, triangular metal columns that appeared without explanation in locations across the globe during late 2020. The original Utah monolith stood roughly 10 to 12 feet high, made of sheets of stainless steel riveted into a three-sided prism and planted firmly in red sandstone[10]. Its sleek, geometric form in the middle of a remote canyon drew immediate comparisons to the alien monolith from Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film *2001: A Space Odyssey*[6]. As copycat monoliths popped up in Romania, California, England, the Netherlands, and dozens of other countries, the whole thing became a massive participatory meme. People photoshopped monoliths into everyday scenes, joked about aliens wrapping up 2020 with one final twist, and debated whether the structures were art, marketing stunts, or genuine extraterrestrial contact[7].
## How It Spread
Fox 13 in Utah broke the story on November 20, 2020[6]. The New York Post picked it up on November 23, and from there the story exploded[3]. A Reddit post on r/interestingasfuck that same day pulled over 4,100 upvotes, and a dedicated subreddit, r/FindTheMonolith, was created on November 24[4]. Within hours, Reddit user Bear__Fucker had pinpointed the exact coordinates in Spanish Valley, near Canyonlands National Park[4].
Tourists immediately began making pilgrimages. One visitor reported driving four hours and hiking nine miles with over 2,000 feet of elevation gain just to see the thing[8]. The monolith became an Instagram trap, with over a thousand photos tagged #utahmonolith. A photographer named Dave Koch posed next to it in a gorilla suit, recreating the famous ape scene from *2001: A Space Odyssey*[8].
On the night of November 27, a group of four men toppled the Utah monolith and hauled it away. Photographer Ross Bernards, who happened to be at the site, documented the removal on Instagram[4]. Utah residents Sylvan Christensen and Andy Lewis, who runs the YouTube channel MrSlackline, later admitted to the act, saying "This is why you don't leave trash in the desert. Leave no trace"[8]. A note reading "Bye bitch" was found at the scene[8].
But the monolith phenomenon was just getting started. On November 26, a second monolith appeared on Batcas Doamnei Hill near Piatra Neamt, Romania. This one was sloppier, with rough welds and an uneven polish, clearly not by the same maker[8]. It vanished within days[5].
On December 2, a third monolith appeared on Pine Mountain in Atascadero, California. The Atascadero News estimated it weighed about 200 pounds, was 10 feet tall, and unlike the Utah version, was simply attached to the ground with rebar rather than embedded in rock[11]. The next night, a group of men livestreamed themselves tearing it down on DLive.tv, chanting "Christ is king!" and "America first!" while wearing night vision goggles and camo gear. They replaced the monolith with a plywood cross[2].
By December 6, monoliths had appeared on Compton Beach on the Isle of Wight in England and in a nature reserve near Oudehorne in the Netherlands[12][9]. Dog walker Tom Dunford, who discovered the Isle of Wight version, told Sky News it was "really reflective" and that "the person who put it there knows what they're doing"[12].
## How to Use
The monolith meme typically works in a few formats:
1. **Object labeling**: Photoshop a shiny monolith into any setting (your bedroom, a grocery store, a Zoom call background) and caption it with something about aliens or the end of 2020
2. **"It's a monolith" jokes**: Point at any tall, vaguely rectangular object and declare it the next monolith sighting. Blocks of cheese, phone booths, and refrigerators all got the treatment[7]
3. **2020 bingo**: Add the monolith to an already overloaded "2020 bingo card" meme alongside pandemic, murder hornets, and wildfires
4. **2001: A Space Odyssey edits**: Splice monolith footage into the famous ape scene from Kubrick's film, or edit meme characters reacting to the monolith as if it were the alien artifact
## Cultural Impact
The monolith phenomenon hit during a unique cultural moment. Locked down by COVID-19, people were primed for a shared mystery that felt harmless and fun. ARTnews described the monolith as "the only kind of public art the entire planet can experience collectively, a wholesome, or at least joyfully absurd, moment of connection" during the physical isolation of quarantine[8].
The art world took the monoliths seriously as an event. Postmasters gallerist Magda Sawon initially suggested the Utah piece might be the work of prankster-artist Maurizio Cattelan[8]. The David Zwirner gallery floated the John McCracken connection[8]. Whether intentional or not, the monoliths raised real questions about anonymous public art, land use, and the internet's ability to turn any object into a shared cultural event.
Media coverage was massive and global. The Utah DPS Instagram post, the KSL TV news segment, the New York Post, the New York Times, the BBC, and dozens of international outlets all covered the story[10][2][12]. The Romanian, British, and Dutch installations got their own national press cycles[9].
The QAnon-linked destruction of the California monolith drew specific concern, with the New York Times covering the livestreamed removal and its "at times racist and homophobic" content[2].
## Fun Facts
- The Utah monolith sat undiscovered in the desert for roughly four years before anyone noticed it, based on Google Earth satellite data showing it appeared between 2015 and 2016[4]
- The Isle of Wight monolith was discovered at 7:30 AM on a Sunday by a man walking his dog, and within half an hour a dozen people had gathered around it[12]
- The Atascadero, California monolith weighed an estimated 200 pounds and could be "knocked over with a firm push" since it was only attached to the ground with rebar[11]
- An anonymous artist behind an Ahmedabad, India monolith said: "The monolith is shrouded in mystery around the world because people enjoy the mystery of unlocking new ideas and unlocking new thoughts"[5]
- The MrSlackline video of the Utah monolith's removal earned 790,000 views and over 2,500 mostly critical comments[4]
## Frequently Asked Questions
### What are the 2020 Metal Monoliths?
They were a series of tall, triangular metal pillars that appeared in remote locations around the world starting in November 2020, beginning with one found in the Utah desert during a bighorn sheep survey[1].
### Where did the 2020 Metal Monoliths come from?
The first monolith was discovered on November 18, 2020 in southeastern Utah by a state helicopter crew. Artists collective The Most Famous Artist later claimed credit for the US installations[6][3].
### What do the 2020 Metal Monoliths mean?
They were widely interpreted as art installations, with strong visual echoes of the alien monolith from *2001: A Space Odyssey*. Online, they became a symbol of 2020's absurdity and a canvas for alien conspiracy jokes[7].
### How do you use the monolith meme?
The most common format involved photoshopping monoliths into everyday settings or pointing at any tall rectangular object and calling it a monolith sighting. They also appeared in "2020 bingo card" memes[7].
### Are the 2020 Metal Monoliths still popular?
No. The meme peaked in late November through mid-December 2020 and died off quickly. The Register declared it a "dead meme" as early as December 8, 2020[9].
### Who made the original Utah monolith?
The Most Famous Artist, a New Mexico-based art collective led by Matty Mo, claimed credit in early December 2020. Mo cited "legalities" preventing full disclosure but said "we are well known for stunts of this nature"[3].
### How long was the Utah monolith in the desert before discovery?
Google Earth satellite imagery showed it was installed between August 2015 and October 2016, meaning it stood unnoticed for approximately four years[4].
### Who removed the Utah monolith?
Utah residents Sylvan Christensen and Andy Lewis (who runs the YouTube channel MrSlackline) removed it on the night of November 27, 2020, saying they wanted to protect the landscape from the crowds it was attracting[8].
### What happened to the California monolith?
A group of men livestreamed themselves tearing it down on December 3, 2020, replacing it with a plywood cross while chanting "Christ is king!" and "America first!" The video included racist and homophobic commentary[2].
### How many monoliths appeared worldwide?
Over 200 similar metal structures were reported across North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa by various individuals and groups[5].
### Was The Most Famous Artist behind all the monoliths?
No. Matty Mo acknowledged the phenomenon had spread beyond his control, writing "Godspeed to all the aliens working hard around the globe to propagate the myth." Many installations were clearly by different creators with varying levels of craftsmanship[7].
### Was the Utah monolith connected to John McCracken?
Early speculation linked it to the late Minimalist sculptor, whose son said McCracken wanted to install work in remote places. However, the structure turned out to be hollow metal over plywood, not a McCracken-quality sculpture[8].
### How much did The Most Famous Artist charge for replica monoliths?
The collective offered "monoliths-as-a-service" at $45,000 per unit, though it was unclear if buyers would actually receive a monolith or if the offer was itself part of the art[3].
### Why did the monoliths go viral?
The discovery came during pandemic lockdowns when people were stuck at home and hungry for shared experiences. The mystery, the *2001* references, and the rapid global spread created a perfect storm for meme content[8].
## References
1. [DPS Aero Bureau Encounters Monolith in Red Rock Country | DPS News]()
2. [California Monolith Is Removed and Replaced With a Cross - The New York Times]()
3. [Monolith mystery over? Stunt artists take credit and sell copies. | Mashable]()
4. [2020 Metal Monoliths - Know Your Meme]()
5. [List of works similar to the 2020 Utah monolith]()
6. [VIDEO: We are not alone? Mysterious object found in Utah during sheep count]()
7. [Innan du fortsätter till Google Maps]()
8. [Monolith / 2020 Metal Monoliths Know Your Meme / This monolith, unlike other installations, was not made of metal, but rather from a wooden plinth covered in mirrored plastic. - onkyo-tx-sr-507]()
9. [These Tweets & Memes About Monoliths Showing Up Prove 2020 Actually Can Get Weirder]()
10. [How the Utah Monolith Became a Public Art Instagram Trap]()
11. [PSA: The 2020 monolith is a dead meme. You can stop putting them up now. Please • The Register]()
12. [Mystifying monolith found amid Utah rocks]()
13. [Mystery Obelisk Appears on Pine Mountain • Atascadero News]()
14. [Monolith discovered on Isle of Wight similar to ones found in US and Romania | UK News | Sky News]()
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