Even though we'd read it is likely just a publicity stunt by Mothership Glass, it didn't really add up (e.g. Why? How would they arrange it? Who do you ring up to get a fake crop circle made?), so we drove down yesterday and took a closer look.
To answer one persons question, its well away from where cc's usually appear, in quite an isolated area, down country lanes out the back of Salisbury. So we didn't expect many to be there, we were wrong.
The first thing that struck us was that the field is right in front of, and very close to, the land owners house, approx 100m (see video). I think it would be near impossible for people to make it without being heard or seen by farming people who would be very aware of and in touch with their land. If its fake, then the owners had to be in on it.
The people raking in the £5pp were making 'woowoo aliens' small talk, so I decided to go a bit deeper. I was told the cc was made sometime last week, and the owners were in shock at first. They sat on it for 3 days before deciding to report it (to who I couldnt get). I had to ask 5 times before I could get a clear answer as to whether anyone was home when it was actually made. Eventually I was told the owners were away a couple of days, and it was there the morning they returned. So no-one was home. Hmmm. The person I was asking realised what I was asking and then insisted on pointing out the farm shop is very busy and there are staff there from the early hours, all day, everyday, working. If its fake, then it would have taken more than a night to make and the staff would have known also.
The circle is huge, taking up most of the field. On the ground you can't really make out the pattern at all, nor the symbols around the edge. There are some very thin parts to the pattern, thinner than a person could walk along. It would take long string around the centre point to mark out a circle, I dont see how absolutely perfect outer circles could be made. I looked at the ground in the very centre, there werent any post holes in the ground. Stalks were bent not broken. Hard to believe it has been faked. We took loads of photos and video, strange but my camera started playing up. I had to restart it, but it still acting up. Has never done it before.
We left in the end as we started feeling nauseous (maybe it was the rare English heat), only time that has happened before was at a cc on Hackpen Hill once. The farm shop was doing a brisk trade and there were still people arriving and paying their £5's. Hmm. After we were out on the road I tried my camera again and it was working without problem.
We have been to a lot of crop circles and seen plenty of fake ones, and real ones. To us, from the huge size and the complexity (dont forget theres only about 5-6 hours of night here in summer - not much time to make a hugely complex cc), the large amount of fine detail, our camera playing up, feeling nauseous, the remote location, we would have to say its not a fake. But, it clearly is the corporate logo of Mothership Glass, even the symbols around the edge are on their website, and the land owners (who it sounds like make a Maize maze each year and charge entry, hmmm) just happened to be away when it was made, so it also smacks of being a fake. If it is, in my opinion, the owners would have to have been in on it, but then, why would they want an advert for bongs on their property? Confusing. Why would a (US?) company want to have their company logo made as a crop circle in the UK? Damaging crops is illegal, so how would they arrange it? and with who? Worse, it would be deceiving people and only show the company had no integrity, not a great advert for them. Echoes of the Nvidia cc in the US. Has anyone asked them yet? So we don't know what to make of it, but thought we'd share what we found.
To answer one persons question, its well away from where cc's usually appear, in quite an isolated area, down country lanes out the back of Salisbury. So we didn't expect many to be there, we were wrong.
The first thing that struck us was that the field is right in front of, and very close to, the land owners house, approx 100m (see video). I think it would be near impossible for people to make it without being heard or seen by farming people who would be very aware of and in touch with their land. If its fake, then the owners had to be in on it.
The people raking in the £5pp were making 'woowoo aliens' small talk, so I decided to go a bit deeper. I was told the cc was made sometime last week, and the owners were in shock at first. They sat on it for 3 days before deciding to report it (to who I couldnt get). I had to ask 5 times before I could get a clear answer as to whether anyone was home when it was actually made. Eventually I was told the owners were away a couple of days, and it was there the morning they returned. So no-one was home. Hmmm. The person I was asking realised what I was asking and then insisted on pointing out the farm shop is very busy and there are staff there from the early hours, all day, everyday, working. If its fake, then it would have taken more than a night to make and the staff would have known also.
The circle is huge, taking up most of the field. On the ground you can't really make out the pattern at all, nor the symbols around the edge. There are some very thin parts to the pattern, thinner than a person could walk along. It would take long string around the centre point to mark out a circle, I dont see how absolutely perfect outer circles could be made. I looked at the ground in the very centre, there werent any post holes in the ground. Stalks were bent not broken. Hard to believe it has been faked. We took loads of photos and video, strange but my camera started playing up. I had to restart it, but it still acting up. Has never done it before.
We left in the end as we started feeling nauseous (maybe it was the rare English heat), only time that has happened before was at a cc on Hackpen Hill once. The farm shop was doing a brisk trade and there were still people arriving and paying their £5's. Hmm. After we were out on the road I tried my camera again and it was working without problem.
We have been to a lot of crop circles and seen plenty of fake ones, and real ones. To us, from the huge size and the complexity (dont forget theres only about 5-6 hours of night here in summer - not much time to make a hugely complex cc), the large amount of fine detail, our camera playing up, feeling nauseous, the remote location, we would have to say its not a fake. But, it clearly is the corporate logo of Mothership Glass, even the symbols around the edge are on their website, and the land owners (who it sounds like make a Maize maze each year and charge entry, hmmm) just happened to be away when it was made, so it also smacks of being a fake. If it is, in my opinion, the owners would have to have been in on it, but then, why would they want an advert for bongs on their property? Confusing. Why would a (US?) company want to have their company logo made as a crop circle in the UK? Damaging crops is illegal, so how would they arrange it? and with who? Worse, it would be deceiving people and only show the company had no integrity, not a great advert for them. Echoes of the Nvidia cc in the US. Has anyone asked them yet? So we don't know what to make of it, but thought we'd share what we found.