Written by Lefteris Tsakalakis

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In Greece, as well as throughout the world, there circulate traditions—some recorded in writing and others passed orally from generation to generation. Traditions are an inexhaustible source of information for every field of research. In our country too, hundreds have survived, containing within their narratives important pieces of information. These details are there, patiently waiting to be decoded by the researcher. Below we present a text from a collection of pagan beliefs of the Thessalian countryside, an excellent record of traditions and beliefs compiled by Chrysostomos Tsaprailis.

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“Following the flow of the Pinios River, after it passes Argissa and before it begins to encircle Larissa from the north, one encounters on the left a small forested area. Somewhere near its center, far from any path, lies a meadow enclosed by a massive fence that has stood there for countless years. The vegetation is extremely tall—the grasses grow beyond two meters. The only disturbance to this green surface is the tops of slender wooden poles protruding twenty to thirty centimeters above the plants.

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Every day, as soon as the sun rises, lines, curves, straight and broken shapes run across the meadow’s greenery, as though some divine hand had used the place overnight as a starlit writing tablet. Once daylight fully arrives, the few permanent inhabitants of the forest climb the tallest surrounding trees and record the revealed symbols onto ceramic plates, which they later hide in tree hollows for reasons only they know. In the previous century, many people from Larissa searched the forest for these plates, believing they concealed unspeakable secrets.

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Some say the meadow belongs to the Sun, that he fenced it countless years ago to rest his horses there. Each night, they say, he ties them to the poles made from unbreakable fairy wood, letting them graze and rest throughout the night. The animals eagerly eat the magical grass, of which a single bite is enough to restore the legs of even the most exhausted traveler. And as they move through the grasses, they record the secrets they witnessed the previous day while flying above the Earth.

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Others claim this grove is one of the summits of the Underworld. The vegetation represents the ends of the dead’s hair, endlessly growing and overflowing from Hades’ chambers. As for the wooden stakes emerging above, these are the tips of the needles belonging to the Lady of the Underworld, who each night embroiders messages for her mother in the Upper World—alas, in a divine language not meant for mortals to understand.

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In any case, those who tried to enter the field at night were never seen again in our world. Yet their acquaintances claim that when they sometimes gaze at the full moon, they believe they see dark spots resembling the silhouettes of the lost.”In this meadow, the horses pulling the Sun’s flying chariot descend each night to rest. There they replenish themselves by eating the magical grass, preparing for their next journey around the Earth. Throughout the night, their movements create various patterns in the tall grass, visible only from above. The elevated observation points are the trees surrounding the meadow, and the designs are recorded onto ceramic surfaces. Afterwards, the ceramic archive is hidden within tree hollows in the forest.

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Could we be looking at a classic case of crop circles in this Thessalian land?

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The elements of the story, examined with modern understanding, would suggest a resounding “YES.” Something from the sky, in some manner, creates patterns on vegetation. Proof that the event was not merely a product of imagination would come if even a single ceramic plate were discovered bearing engraved designs—perhaps offering information more useful than we imagine. There is also another detail possibly linking the celestial creators of crop circles with the UFO phenomenon: the disappearance of those who dared enter the meadow at night. Here, quite clearly, the scenario of abductions appears, with the abducted being located by acquaintances “beyond Earth,” on the surface of the Moon.