HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN? Or ghost? Or robot? Or whatever it is in crosswalks around Philadelphia, especially in the historic district around Independence Hall. These little guys began popping up about a year ago, according to park guards, Philadelphia Parking Authority personnel and tour guides I've spoken to. T
These little figures appear to be made of a linoleum type material that begins to become part of the asphalt after traffic rolls over them in the hot sun. They come in multiple colors -- I've seen tham in red, white and yellow. Some of them appear in the same crosswalks as Toynbee tiles -- the famous and cryptic street messages that began appearing around Philadelphia in the late 1980's and spread to cities all over the country and South America during the next two decades. (Toynbee tiles mention the works of British author Arnold Toynbee and American filmmaker Stanley Kubrick's 2001 and mention the resurrection of the dead on the planet Jupiter).
Yes, it's all weird. Could these stickman figures be the work of the same Toynbee tiler(s)? Contact me if you know anything about this urban mystery.

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