Ross Calvin, founder of the Denver-based bitcoin-mining firm Parhelion and head of the American Colossus Foundation, launched the campaign on Geyser Fund, a Bitcoin-based crowdfunding platform, in March 2024. 

The project, called “The Great Colossus of Prometheus” on Alcatraz, seeks $450 million to build what Calvin describes as “a monument to American manifest destiny.” The nickel-bronze statue and an underground Prometheion Museum aim to celebrate technology and human ingenuity.

More than a year after its launch, a crypto founder’s plan to build a 450-foot Prometheus statue on Alcatraz has raised just $5 and faces long odds.