THE GEORGIA GUIDESTONES

Erected circa Winter 1979 of "Pyramid Blue Granite" in Elberton Georgia

As They Stand They Point Everywhere; Encompassing the Cardinal Directions in Orientation to the Heavens:  Their Message is for Everyone.

The four large upright blocks pointing outward are oriented to the limits of the migration of the moon during the course of the year.

An eye-level, oblique hole is drilled from the South to the North side of the center, Gnomen stone, so that the North Star is always visible, symbolizing constancy and orientation with the heavens. the forces of nature.

A slot is cut in the middle of the Gnomen stone to form a window which aligns with the positions of the rising sun at the Summer and Winter Solstices and at the Equinox, so that the noon sun shines to indicate noon on a curved line.

The cap stone includes a calendar of sorts, where sunlight beams through a 7/8 inch hole at noon, and shines on the South face of the center stone. As the sun makes its travel cycle, the spot beamed through the hole can tell the day of the year at noon each day. Allowances are made because of variations between standard time and sun time to set the beam of sunlight at an equation of time.

The site was chosen because it commands a view to the East and to the West and is within the range of the Summer and Winter sunrises and sunsets. The stones are oriented in those directions.

The Guides Explained

A massive granite monument espousing the conservation of mankind and future generations. Sources for the sizable financing of the project choose to remain anonymous. The wording of the message proclaimed on the monument is in 12 languages, including the archaic languages of Sanskrit, Babylonian Cuneiform, Egyptian Hieroglyphics and Classical Greek, as well as English, Russian, Hebrew, Arabic, Hindi, Chinese, Spanish, and Swahili.

The guides, followed by explanatory precepts, are as follows, the words are exactly as the Sponsors provided them:

"LET THESE BE GUIDESTONES TO AN AGE OF REASON"

The message of the Georgia Guide stones:

1. Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.
2. Guide reproduction wisely - improving fitness and diversity.
3. Unite humanity with a living new language.
4. Rule passion - faith - tradition - and all things with tempered reason.
5. Protect people and nations with fair laws and just courts.
6. Let all nations rule internally resolving external disputes in a world court.
7. Avoid petty laws and useless officials.
8. Balance personal rights with social duties.
9. Prize truth - beauty - love - seeking harmony with the infinite.
10. Be not a cancer on the earth - Leave room for nature - Leave room for nature.

The Georgia Guide Stones are out in the middle of nowhere on a farm near Georgia State Highway 77. 7.2 miles North of Elberton Georgia, 1.3 miles South of Hart-Elbert County Line and 7.8 miles South of Hartwell Georgia.

Just the facts:

Overall Height: 19 feet., 3 inches

Amount of Granite 951 cubic feet

Weight (Grand Total) 237,746 pounds
About 119 tons

Four Upright Stones 6 feet, 6 inches wide
16 feet, 4 inches high 1 foot, 7 inches thick
About 42,437 pounds each, or 169,750 pounds total.

One Center Stone The Gnomen Stone
1 foot , 7 inches thick: 20,957 pounds

One Cap Stone 6 feet, 6 inches wide
9 feet, 8 inches long
1 foot, 7 inches thick:
24,832 pounds

Four Support Stones Bases
7 feet, 4 inches long
2 feet, 0 inches long
1 foot, 4 inches thick
About 4,875 pounds each, or 19,500 pounds total.

One Support Stone Base
4 feet, 2 1/2 inches long
2 feet, 2 inches wide
1 foot, 7 inches thick
2,707 pounds

Lettering Over 4,000 sandblasted characters, each about 4 inches high.

The four large upright blocks pointing outward are oriented to the limits of the migration of the moon during the course of the year.

"In order to stabilize world population, it is necessary to eliminate 350,000 people a day. It is a horrible thing to say, but it's just as bad not to say it."   - Oceanographer Jaques Cousteau Published in the Courier, a publication of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)