The Clanfield Triangle Formation

Friday - June 19, 1998

An aerial shot by Steve Alexander ©1998

Many crop formations are so large or so elaborate that they are difficult to understand from the ground, certainly if you have not seen an aerial photo before your visit. Clanfield would be one of these.

The formation is located in a field to the west of the A3. It is easy to access but the complexity, grace and elaboration of the formation and its lay are almost too much to take in. A ring of circles, of three differing sizes, is disposed around a central element, itself ringed. It is a form of great subtlety. Though constructed entirely of circles and rings, it contains clear references to hexagons and, more significantly to triangles. Euclid's first theorem, a perennial favorite of the Circle Makers, is also referred to here.




A drawing by Michael Glickman ©1998

The anti-clockwise lay is beautifully handled. The edge between laid and standing crop is very precise, giving the cleanly cut feel of many of the better formations.

This year's innovation, a meticulous zig-zag sweep which seems to be almost woven, is widely used. Each of the circles has an "eyebrow" which links around the formation to form a delightful perimeter pathway of about four feet wide. Walking this path, the wheat is swept diagonally before you, first to the left and then to the right, continuously around the formation.

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