Badrulchau Stone Monoliths

On a hillside in the northern state of Ngarchelong, 37 enormous basalt columns stand in rough rows overlooking the sea. Each weighs several tonnes and some carry faint carved faces. The Badrulchau monoliths are among the most impressive prehistoric remains in Micronesia.

There is no entrance gate and no museum, just the stones, the grass, and the view down to the reef. Go in the late afternoon when the light is best. A small fee is collected by the local state government.

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A story
Local legend says the monoliths were carved by the gods to hold up a giant bai whose roof was never built. Archaeologists are more cautious — they date the columns to around AD 161, but who placed them and why is still unsettled.

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