Furze Hill, nr Lockeridge, Wiltshire. Reported 31st August.
Image Peter Ainsworth Copyright 1998
I discovered this formation on the evening of
31st August 1998, together with my friend Peter Ainsworth. It is located in the same field
as the 21st June 'Cat's Eye' formation, and is situated to the right of that formation,
between it and the next set of tramlines. We were unable to spend long in the formation
because it was getting dark, though we did a basic examination and took some photographs.
The new formation is sited parallel to the tramlines and consists of two small circles,
one larger than the other, joined by a path. Midway up the path is a 'bar', which extends
on either side. Between the bar and the largest circle is a second bar. This second bar
protrudes on the left side only, and is aligned to the path at approximately 40 degrees.
As crop circles go, this formation is small; I would estimate the largest circle to be no
bigger than approx. 7'-8'. The lay is very simple and a little messy. The circles are
spiralled anticlockwise with standing stems in the centres. The path flows down the field
from the smaller circle to the larger.
There are more than a few broken stalks in the circles. At the centre of the largest
circle the soil is cracked, with an indentation which could suggest a pole-hole.
I wouldn't like to guess how long this formation has been here. The lay is suggestive of
mature crop, and a marked contrast to the other, earlier formation next to it. Apart from
broken stalks in the circles and the general scruffy appearance of the whole thing, it is
undamaged and looks unvisited.
Both Peter and I had visited the 'Cat's Eye' formation earlier that afternoon
(separately), and neither of us remember seeing it then, though I remember there being a
fair amount of lodging in the field, so I may have looked in that direction and assumed
that any 'dip' in the crop was also lodging. I left the field some time between 5.00. and
5.30. Peter and I returned to the field about 7:30 that evening; we'd met in the Barge and
Peter wanted to look at the grapeshot circles in the main formation (which
were still well-preserved) and to gather some 'samples'. It was on the second trip that we
noticed the dumb-bell.
We are unable to ascertain with certainty whether or not the formation was there on our
earlier visits. Peter had taken some photos of the 'Cat's Eye' from the opposite field,
which we'd hoped would reveal whether or not the dumb-bell was present at that time, but
these are inconclusive. One shows a 'shape' which could be it (and also features a strange
white 'rectangle' in the sky), but this shape is not present in other photographs
taken at the same time. A more extensive photographic analysis, for which I do not have
the facilities, would be required.
There are two other facts of interest which I experienced in relation to this formation.
Firstly, none of the pictures I took of this formation came out. I checked the negatives,
and noticed that I have the negatives for the pictures taken either side of these, but the
negative strips for these shots are completely blank.
Image Peter Ainsworth Copyright 1998
Secondly, I saw a ball of light whilst
walking from Furze Hill to the Barge, after my first visit to the formation. I'd just
passed the footpath leading up to Adam's Grave (on the main road that goes up the hill
over the top of East Field) and saw the light-ball suspended about 10 feet above the
road, about 15 ft away from me (both guestimates). It was a little bigger than a pool
ball, and not particularly bright; it seemed more to glow from within than to radiate. As
I watched, it sank down to knee-height, pausing before shooting off into a maize field to
the right. The whole thing lasted 10-15 seconds. Needless to say, I had a peek in the
field afterwards (and the day after, on my morning hike to the top of Adam's Grave) but
could see nothing. Whether the ball of light is connected to the Furze Hill formations is
a matter of conjecture, though it does seem interesting that it appeared between my two
visits to the field and less than a mile and a half away.
As we all know, these 'additions' or 'tag-ons' to existing formations are not rare, though
this formation seems more a separate entity than an addition, tied to the 'Cat's Eye'
purely by proximity. Whilst some researchers assume that such add-ons must be the work of
pranksters, I don't think this necessarily follows; for the sake of argument, if one
believes that some kind of 'energy' is creating the formations, I see no reason why either
a) the same energy cannot strike the same place twice (rather like lightning, which may
explain its rarity...) or b) if such energy is considered 'residual', then why it cannot
'manifest' twice in the
same field in the same year (something we have seen a lot of this season).
So if this formation appeared between our visits to the field, why? Peter speculated that
perhaps it was to do with the interest we had both shown in the 'Cat's Eye' formation,
perhaps as a response to that interest. I frequently concur with the view that the
formations can and do act / react with the human mind (individual and collective), so this
doesn't seem that surprising.
Perhaps a last-minute addition in what was one of only two unharvested wheat fields I
could find in the Avebury/Alton Barnes area? Though having said this, the other field was
right next door, and completely 'virgin', so any circle-manifesting forces wanting one
last spurt - or indeed anybody fancying a last-minute stomp - would perhaps be more
attracted to that one.
If anybody else has any information about this formation, I would be very interested to
see it, though as yet I have been unable to find anybody who even knows of its existence.
If it did appear that day, it certainly seems an odd way to close a season.
Report by Darren Francis, with thanks to Peter Ainsworth
