An icon of American heritage and civilization, Plymouth Rock, was found vandalized and spray-painted upon Monday morning by criminals at its namesake in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Plymouth Rock symbolizes the first arrival of the pilgrims from England in North America in 1620 A.D. The vandalism was found just weeks before a ceremony intended to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the pilgrim’s arrival in Massachusetts.

The large boulder is marked with the characters ‘1620’ to symbolize the pilgrims’ arrival. The rock was the first sight of those who disembarked from the Mayflower in the New World.

It’s unclear what the red spray-paint on the rock is intended to convey, but there’s a strong possibility the vandalism is motivated by hatred towards the icon of American culture.

In addition to the rock, the spray-paint vandals also targeted a nearby statue intended to commemorate the first pilgrims to arrive in North America.

We are saddened and sickened by the recent vandalism in our historic town. This is just one of our historic monuments that was hit. We will begin clean up as soon as possible and the police are investigating. pic.twitter.com/kQeTxO7sor

— Melissa Arrighi (@MelissaArrighi) February 17, 2020

It’s also noteworthy that the vandalism was found on President’s Day, suggesting a further possibility of anti-American hatred as a motivation.

400th anniversary celebrations of the pilgrims’ arrival are scheduled for April, and to this day are a point of pride for many of their descendants who live in Massachusetts.

The director of a Plymouth cultural and tourism agency, Lea Filson, expressed her disappointment to see the icon of America so disrespected.

“Seeing this type of disrespect for the historic reminders of the Mayflower story is both sad and unsettling. The outpouring of concern and anger over the incident has been a positive ending to a thoughtless gesture.”

The town of Plymouth has already removed the vandalism from the rock, and local police are investigating to locate the culprits.