Cancar Spider Web Rice Fields, Ruteng – Flores

In the small village of Cancar, near Ruteng in central Flores, the rice fields are laid-out as giant spider webs. The shape of these rice fields is the result of the traditional communal agriculture of the indigenous Manggarai people. Centuries ago, the cultivated land, known as lingko, was shared by the entire village. The communal fields were circular, with the lodok at the center, where ceremonial rituals were held around the harvest.

Each family was allocated a segment of the rice field, radiating from the center outward. The more resources a family had, the larger their slice of the pie; at the time, the rice fields were shaped like pie charts. Later, the paddies were further subdivided by the decedents of the original owners, leading to the striking, web-like shape of the lingko today.