'MONOLITH Fever' has broken out in Spain as the bizarre trend for emulating Stanley Kubrick's futuristic 1968 film prop expands across the globe.
The epic, 2001: Space Odyssey centres on a plain, black, rectangular 'sculpture' appearing out of nowhere and which turns out to be the work of aliens – and, on the eve of what would be the 20th anniversary year of this fictitious finding, similar monoliths have been cropping up on either side of the pond.
Firstly, a helicopter discovered one of these strange metal posts in a remote part of the Utah desert in mid-November, and it was taken down that same week by a group of environmental activists who were concerned about the crowds it was drawing in.
A second one, this time with a triangular base, turned up on the Batca Doamnei hillside near the north-eastern Romanian town of Piatra Neamt, towards the end of November, and was also removed.
The third popped up a week ago in a mountainous part of the central coast road through California, disappearing the following day, and a fourth one has since appeared in The Netherlands.
Now, Spain seems to have jumped on the bandwagon: A tall, thin gunmetal-grey squared post, which looks to be made from steel, was spotted at the weekend in Ayllón (Segovia province, Castilla y León).
It was set up in the ruins of the Santiago church, and it is claimed that hundreds of locals have already headed up there armed with cameras.
Ayllón's mayoress has debunked rumours that the council has asked people to stop visiting it.
In fact, she, herself, took a trip up there on Monday morning, and describes it as a 'crude structure made from three sheets of metal bolted together', fitted rather precariously.
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