It all started with a
picture. In April 2007
Monique Klinkenbergh
stumbled across the
image that would
upend her life. Its
composition—triangles
and diamonds in con-
centric circles etched
into a cornfield—
evoked a profound
visceral response.
The former magazine
editor was struck by
the design, the integ-
rity of the mathematics
between the shapes.
“I have a background
in fine art and also
have this rational mind
thinking, ‘How is this
possible?’ It was 13-fold
geometry, very difficult
to construct on paper,”
she says. “Try to divide
a cake into 13 perfect
pieces. You can’t.”
She knew then she’d
have to explore this
phenomenon. And she
headed off to England’s
Wiltshire county, the
epicenter of crop
circles. It’s proba-
bly no coincidence
that Wiltshire also
houses Stonehenge
and several other
prehistoric circular
monuments believed
to be associated with
solstice rituals. In this
framework, it makes
sense that the rural
English county would
become the locus for
crop circle enthusiasts,
or “croppies.”DECEMBER 2019/JANUARY 2020
Geometry
of Giants
Digging into the
mystical world of
crop circle tourism
BY SOO YOUN
PHOTOGRAPHS BY
ROBERT ORMEROD(continued next page)