Aboriginal Figure Found Carved in Outback

July 15, 1998
Fox News

SYDNEY - A massive figure of an Aboriginal man has been found carved into the desert in the remote Australian outback, but police on Wednesday said the discovery was no mystery.

"It's not that spooky, not unless they drive Toyotas,'' said Senior Constable Paul Liersch was quoted as saying in The Australian newspaper.

The four-km (2- mile) long figure, with an outline of about 30 km (19 miles), depicts an Aboriginal man poised to throw a spear, Liersch said.

Sections of the Australian media were quick to suggest possible alien involvement but Liersch suggested there was a more earthly explanation for the figure outside the tiny town of Marree, about 600 km (370 miles) north of Adelaide.

He said the outline appeared to have been carved out of barren state land near the giant Lake Eyre salt lake by farm machinery which ploughed lines measuring 32 metres (105 feet) across in places.

"I found toilet paper out there so if it has been done from space, they're fairly much like us,'' Liersch said.

Liersch said it was more likely the work of locals seeking to make a tourist attraction out of Marree, which boasts a modest population of 60.

But The Australian reported an American flag and a note referring to the U.S. Branch Davidian cult had been found at the site. Branch Davidian leader David Koresh and about 80 followers died in a botched FBI raid in the Texas town of Waco in 1993.

Liersch said he drove out from Marree to the artwork at Finniss Springs after an anonymous fax giving directions to the figure was sent to the Marree hotel.

Liersch said the fax claimed the figure was the largest artwork in the world, five times larger than ancient human drawings at Nasca in the Peruvian dert.