Staff photo by Fritz Busch Since Dec. 23, what appears to be a monolith has been standing in a farm field just west of State Highway 4, on the south edge of Sleepy Eye, just north of Schroepfer, Inc.

fbusch@nujournal.com

SLEEPY EYE — An unusual object has popped up in a farm field near T. H. 4, just south of Sleepy Eye over the past couple days.

Sleepy Eye businessman Dave Haala reported the object that appeared to resemble a monolith from a distance.

“A couple other people and I saw it since Wednesday morning. I never saw anybody out there. I just noticed it when I drove to our business” said Haala.

Upon closer observation, the object appeared to be made of wood with aluminum foil wrapped around it. The foil at the top of the structure could be heard flapping in the wind Friday.

Late this year, a series of metal columns, often referred to as monoliths, were reported internationally, following the discovery of the “Utah monolith,” a metal pillar that was found in a remote Utah canyon.

The Utah monolith was nearly 10 feet tall and made of metal sheets riveted to a triangular prism. It was unlawfully placed on public land. It was found by state biologists during a helicopter survey of wild bighorn sheep, according to Wikipedia.

After intense media coverage, the monolith was removed on Nov. 27 by four unidentified men, according to news reported.

After the Utah pillar was found, similar columns were found in many states and throughout the world. Many were built by local artists and other people, to imitate the Utah monolith, a three-sided, gleaming, all metal structure. The Sleepy Eye monolith is a four-sided, wooden structure with a foil covering.

The monoliths have been compared to one that appeared in the 1968 science fiction movie “2001: A Space Odyssey” directed by Stanley Kubrick. The screenplay was written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke.