The mystery monolith returns! Mirrored structure appears again in Las Vegas desert

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. It’s the first time that the monolith has been seen near Las Vegas since one appeared four years ago in Sin City. A monolith near Gass Peak, Nev., on Sunday, June 16, 2024 Though "monolith" is technically a misnomer for the object — a monolith is a single, large stone, typically carved into an obelisk or other object — the reflective pillars have taken on the name likely as a reference to the towering, black, evolution machines depicted in 2001: A Space Odyssey. The mysterious silver monolith that was placed in the Utah desert has disappeared less than 10 days after it was spotted by wildlife biologists performing a helicopter survey of bighorn sheep, federal officials and witnesses said John McCracken, an artist who died in 2011, was a name frequently floated as the potential creator of the original Utah monument. “This discovery of a monolith piece — that’s very much in line with his artistic vision.” David Zwirner, a gallery owner who represents McCraken's estate, told the paper that he believed the Utah monolith was a genuine piece created by McCraken, but then retracted his statement after he saw screws and rivets, which he said McCracken never would have left visible in one of his own pieces, according to Vox.