The Sun
Rutlands Farm

THE SUN
March 2009. The crop-circle season is about to begin, and we’re watching the first stirrings patiently and closely. During a visit to the great stone circle of Avebury—the epicenter of the phenomenon—William, passing through the area, takes a photo from the ramparts of the megalithic site, with the fields in the background. At that time they are not yet in flower. One of his shots is published the next day, March 22, on the culture-crop.com news page, captioned “WAIT AND SEE.”

On the night of April 22–23, 2009, the “Sun” of Rutlands Farm, the 3rd formation of the season, appears in oilseed rape (colza) in full bloom, in a field visible in the background of the WAIT AND SEE photo. Seen from the ramparts of Avebury—the largest stone circle in Europe—the design stands out for its clarity and simplicity: a central disc ringed by sixteen triangular rays. It is unmistakably a solar motif.

William arrives on May 2. Ten days have passed, yet the ground remains surprisingly clean. In the paths created by visitors, you can see recent footprints; everywhere else the lay holds: the flowers seem to “float” above the leaves, the stems are bent at the base without breakage, the natural bloom (pruina) is intact, and there is that typical selectivity where upright stems stand right beside laid stems, as if combed. He takes photographs, notes flow directions, then leaves with an initial set of observations.

He returns later in the summer. By late July, the curved stems are still unfractured; some have brought their seeds to maturity. In the meantime, the only notable damage comes from human traffic, clearly distinguishable from the original lay.

From a “how-it-was-made” standpoint, everything recalls Golden Ball Hill (2005): the same integrity of the lay in oilseed rape, the same neatness on the ground, the same absence of any traces of classic mechanical flattening. William’s verdict is straightforward: a formation with no signature of boards or devices, placed on the short list of “clean” oilseed rape cases.

From Avebury, the figure lies along the Avebury–Milk Hill–Stonehenge alignment corridor, set slightly back from the main axis. That line crosses the Wiltshire plateau—the very area where the great “Galaxy” of 2001 materialized… on a memorable stormy night.

This case is chiefly of technical interest—a “sun” in oilseed rape with on-the-ground characteristics that are hard to imitate. Its simple form is obvious to anyone, but its hidden message and purpose would only come to light more than a decade later—something we invite you to discover soon in the Research & Decoding section.

OILSEED RAPE DOSSIER – Other photo galleries of oilseed rape formations made with boards

Lay: the on-the-ground arrangement of stems within a formation—their direction, flow and layering (stems laid, standing, woven or in swirls), the condition of stems (bent at the base vs. broken), the bloom (pruina), and the cleanliness of the ground (footprints, trampling). It’s the formation’s “technical” fingerprint used to assess the flattening method and its selectivity (some stems laid, others left standing).