The Jungle Patrol Monument - the origins & its inclusion in the newspaper stories

Recently in Frew #2017, the 1987 Team Fantomen story "The Secret of Polymos" was published, and in our X-Band: Phantom Podcast #333 - March 2026 newspaper stories, comics & news review, we made mention that the Jungle Patrol Monument shown in the story was when it made its debut in the Phantom's world.

The monument has remained consistent in that it memorialises an unknown patrolman; however, the design has changed slightly over the years by different creators and publishers. Cesar Spadari drew the monument as an obelisk with the date of 1827, and by the time the monument made its way into the newspaper adventures written by Tony DePaul, it included a bust of the unknown patrolman on top of the column.

Scene from the "The Secret of Polymos" story first published in a Fantomen comic in 1987 created by Donne Avenell and Cesar Spadari

Scene of the monument from the "Plutonium Pirates" story. First published in Sunday newspapers in 2007. Design is by Paul Ryan.

What may interest some creators is that the story of the battle in the jungle in 1827, which saw at least one patrolman die, has not yet been explored by anyone. On top of the yet-to-be-told story is why the patrolman is unknown.

Surely there is a story that a current-day creator can create on the origin of the monument. According to the Phantom Wiki and our dates in the Phantom Bible, 1827 will be the time that the 14th Phantom was alive.

At this stage, the monument has only been included in Team Fantomen and newspaper stories post-Lee Falk's death. Claes Reimerthi wrote it in one story, and it has been written in several other stories written by Tony DePaul. In the newspaper stories, the monument has been slightly changed, with the upper part of the obelisk being a bust with the shape of a patrolman (see above).

Thanks to the amazing Phantom Wiki, the list of stories the monument has been included in are:

Newspaper stories

• "The Halloween Kidnappers" (Daily adventure #197)

• "Plutonium Pirates" (Sunday adventure #167)

• "The Battlements of the Nomad" (Sunday adventure #182)

• "The Wiseguy" (Sunday adventure #184)

• "The Phantom is Everywhere" (Sunday adventure #185)

• "To Wrack and Ruin at Gravelines" (Daily adventure #258)

Team Fantomen stories

• "The Secret of Polymos"

• "The Commander is Dead"

• "Duel on Destiny Top, Part 1"

• "The Halloween Gang"

• "Fight Evil, Part 2"

• "The Bank Robbers"

• "Return of the Commander, Part 1"

• "Return of the Commander, Part 2"