The Toynbee tiles, also called Toynbee plaques, are messages of unknown origin found embedded in asphalt of streets in about two dozen major cities in the United States and four South American cities. Since the 1980s, several hundred tiles have been discovered. They are generally about the size of an American license plate, but sometimes considerably larger. They contain some variation of the following inscription:
Top: Large, colorful Toynbee tile found in downtown Washington, D.C. Bottom: Closeup of its bottom tab, apparently mentioning the Soviet Union, which had been gone for years by the time this photo was taken. ("As media U.S.S.R. and Fronts are against it.")
A Toynbee tile in New York City, 2013
Image: Toynbee 1
Image: Toynbee 2
Justin Duerr is an American artist, musician, and writer. A fixture of both the underground punk rock and outsider art scenes in Philadelphia for decades, Duerr is best known for his research into the Toynbee tile phenomenon as depicted in the 2011 documentary film Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles. His musical and artistic output includes albums with various groups and numerous artworks.
Duerr at his 2017 solo exhibition at Philadelphia's Magic Gardens
On the Heels of World War Five (2016), #26 in Duerr's interconnecting scroll series
Library of the Dolls (2017)
I Found a Hole in the Sky (2019)
