Continuing the theme of unusual stone formations, which we began with the publication of material about stone rivers, today we will tell you about another interesting phenomenon - Hammered stones or Stone forest.
This place is located about 18 km west of Varna, Bulgaria on the way to the capital of the country Sofia. At first glance, it seems that these are ancient ruins, but in fact these stones were created by nature.
The stone columns are collected in separate small groups along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast with a total length of 8 km. The height of the stones varies from 5 to 7 meters, and the width - from 30 cm to 3 meters. The most interesting thing is that inside these stones are mostly hollow and composed of sand. They do not have a solid foundation and do not attach to the bedrock. Instead, the hammered stones just stick out of the sand, as if they had been hammered into it with a hammer.
Origin of Hammered Stones
These formations have been known since ancient times, but were first documented by the scientific community in 1828.
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Since then, dozens of theories have been put forward about their origins, ranging from coral formations to limestone nodules.
One of the most plausible explanations was put forward by the Bulgarian brothers-geologists Peter Gochev and Stefan Bonchev. The brothers believe that the columns formed in the Cenozoic era, about 50 million years ago, when Eastern Europe was covered with oceans. Silt and sedimentary rock settled on the seabed and compressed to form limestone.
Some time later, methane gas in underwater fields began to seep from the seabed. As the pressurized gases made their way to the surface through the limestone layer, they left behind long hollow holes.
Millions of years later, when the sea dried up, the crumbling limestone layer exposed tall pillars protruding from the ground. This theory does not explain everything, but it is the best we have to date.
Stones status
In the 1930s, the Hammered Stones were given the status of a natural landmark. In 2011, the columns were nominated for UNESCO World Heritage status, but were never able to receive it.