Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
A monolith stands below the castle Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Germany. DPA/PA Images
quizzle me this
Quiz: How much do you know about monoliths?
There’s not really a hard-and-fast rule for what counts as a monolith… so we’re exercising some creative licence, here.
MONOLITHS ARE ALL the rage these days.
Several metal columns have popped up several times in the US and EU, prompting elaborate theories and some warranted eye-rolling. Three of the five shortly disappeared afterwards.
A monolith can be: a single great stone, often in the form of a column; or a geological feature made of stone or rock, though geologists think ‘monolith’ is an ambiguous term.
But feck that, here’s a quiz on them.
Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, is a sandstone rock formation, and sometimes referred to as the largest monolith because it rises abruptly from its surroundings. How tall is it?
Shutterstock
248m
348m
438m
501m
Pedra da Gávea is a monolithic mountain in Rio de Janeiro. The face on side was created by what, according to most researchers?
Local farmers from the 1800s
A creative Portuguese invader
Some unknown prehistoric American people
Erosion
The famous Easter Island heads are Mo’ai monoliths, carved from stone on the island off the west coast of Chile. When were they carved?
Between 200-300 BC
Between 500- 900 AD
Between 1250-1500 AD
I can’t remember anything that happened before the pandemic
Monolithos is a village in Greece. The steps leading to its castle ruins are quite slippery - why is that?
Because of the number of visitors wearing them away
They were made that way as a defence measure
What shape is the Scullin Monolith, located in Antarctica, of gneiss and granitic origin?
Bird-shaped
Pyramid-shaped
Cone-shaped
Crescent-shaped
Where has a mysterious 2020 metal monolith not popped up?
Utah
Florida
Netherlands
The Isle of Wight
The Phobos monolith, located on Mars’s moon Phobos, is a boulder described as roughly what size?
Wikipedia
A building
A plane
A car
A can
Savandurga is considered to be among the largest monolith hills in Asia. What country is it in?
Nepal
India
Indonesia
Pakistan
Penyal d'Ifac in Spain is 332 metres high, and is the smallest natural park in Spain, possibly in Europe. Over 300 species of animal live in its 45 hectares - but, unusually, what animal lives near its peak?
Finches
Chameleons
Cats
Dogs
And finally, why are there mysterious metal monoliths popping up around the world?
Aliens
God’s latest 2020 test of our patience
Probably some stupid PR campaign
I don’t know and I don’t want to know
You scored out of !
Listen - it's a very niche subject.
You scored out of !
Not bad, fair play.
You scored out of !
Go on you good thing!
have your say