Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper image of the Marree Man
Geoglyphs are works of art that are made either by making mounds out of material like rocks or soil or by digging lines or shapes into the soil. Most geoglyphs are impossible to see as art at ground level. They simply look like grooves or mounds in the earth. You may not even see them at all. However, if you see them from a plane, what they are becomes clear.
Some examples of geoglyphs are the Nazca lines in Peru and the Serpent Mound in Ohio, U.S.A. These are examples of rather large and well-known geoglyphs that have been around since long before our time. We also have a relatively good idea of who made them. Oddly, the largest geoglyph in the world is less than twenty years old and nobody seems to know who made it. This geoglyph is called the “Marree Man” and it is located in the outback in southern Australia.
The “Marree Man” or “Stuart’s Giant” was discovered in July of 1998 by a pilot that was flying over the plateau on which the geoglyph is located. The tremendous work of art was largely ignored however, until a local hotel owner received an anonymous fax regarding the “Marree Man.” The hotel owner told the local newspaper about it and the story ran on July 15, 1998. It was then that the public realized that there was a giant-sized and mysterious geoglyph less than three miles outside of the town of Marree.
The “Marree Man” depicts a standing aboriginal hunter with some sort of spear or possibly a boomerang in his hand. The man is roughly two and a half miles tall and is nude. Some experts believe that it is remarkably accurate in its depiction of an aboriginal hunter, as far as how one would have been drawn by the aboriginals. However, others say that it is incorrect. Either way, it is a very astonishing work of art.
Experts believe that the “Marree Man” was completed shortly before it was discovered, yet nobody even noticed that it was being made. There must have been some heavy equipment there and more than one person, to be sure. Yet, not one clue that someone was working on a huge project out there came up. In fact, since that time, no one has even come forward and admitted to making it. This is very surprising because whoever did it, did not commit a crime. They have no apparent reason to hide their identity, apart from wanting to tease the rest of us.
Despite the fact that no one has come forward to explain the “Marree Man” to the world, experts have a good idea of how it was made. The outline of the geoglyph was made by removing the vegetation from the soil where the lines were. There was also a layer of soil removed to reveal the lighter soil beneath, thus making the “Marree Man” stand out against its surroundings. It is thought that the work was accomplished by using tractors or plows to move the materials, judging by tread marks left at the scene. It is also thought that the artist or artists used GPS to map out their design and make it as accurate as it is.
Today, the “Marree Man” is slowly fading, but it is still clearly visible from a plane. There are some plane tours that will take you over it. However, it will eventually erode away, so get your glimpse while it is still there.
For now, there is no way of knowing why the “Marree Man” was even put there to begin with. Indeed, it may never be known who made the “Marree Man” or why they did it.
Sources
Marree Man, retrieved 9/23/09, samemory.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=258
Marree Man, retrieved 9/23/09, hows.org.uk/personal/hillfigs/foreign/marree/mar.htm
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claireshana on 
fallenone on 
The Marree Man Geoglyph is not the largest in the world. There is a man made glyph in Central South America that is 22 miles wide.