Sail Rock, or Parus Rock , is a natural sandstone

Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

 monolith

Monolith

A monolith is a geological feature such as a mountain, consisting of a single massive stone or rock, or a single piece of rock placed as, or within, a monument...

 located on the shore of the Black Sea

Black Sea

The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...

, in Krasnodar Krai

Krasnodar Krai

-External links:* **...

, Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

. It resembles the outline of a ship's sail

Sail

A sail is any type of surface intended to move a vessel, vehicle or rotor by being placed in a wind—in essence a propulsion wing. Sails are used in sailing.-History of sails:...

, hence its name.

The monolith lies 17 km to the southeast of Gelendzhik

Gelendzhik

Gelendzhik is a resort town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the Gelendzhik Bay of the Black Sea, between Novorossiysk and Tuapse . Greater Gelendzhik sprawls for along the coastline and covers an area of 122,754 ha...

, near the village of Praskoveyevka (which is about 500 meters from the coast) and the farmstead of Dzhankhot (approximately twice that distance from the coast). Sail Rock has a sheer vertical slope confronting the shore of sea, isolated from the mass of basic rock by geological forces. It is more than three-fourths revealed by the tide and lies perpendicular to the coast. What is most remarkable about this landmark is its proportions. While the cliff is only a little more than a meter thick, its height is about 25 meters and its length about 20. Thus, the form of the cliff is described as resembling the outline of a quadrangular sail.

An opening of unclear origin is located in the sail, approximatively 2.5 meters above the ground. Many guides state that the formation was a defense against mountain artillery

Artillery

Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...

 during the Caucasian War

Caucasian War

The Caucasian War of 1817–1864, also known as the Russian conquest of the Caucasus was an invasion of the Caucasus by the Russian Empire which ended with the annexation of the areas of the North Caucasus to Russia...

. However, this version of the origin of the opening is under some doubt. In 1903, S. Vasyukov, who was investigating the Black Sea coast, wrote after the inspection of the cliff that it was "[..] shot from a battleship

Battleship

A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...

 by seamen, they released 4 projectiles, but the wall remained firm, although the traces are noticeable, but they nowhere opened the rock [...]".

Origin

The appearance of this unique formation is explained by the pounding of the sea on the land (erosion

Erosion

Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...

), as well as the different strengths of its constituent rocks.

Contemporary status

Sail Rock's status as a natural monument was declared November 24, 1971 by the administration of Gelendzhik. Protection of the rock was entrusted to the Divnomorskiy rural council. The surrounding beach

Beach

A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...

and its environs are a place for outdoor leisure and recreation, including nearby health resorts.

External links

Visitors information about Sail Rock from the Hotel Parus Sail Rock at Praskoveyevka Environments An article on the geological monuments of nature of Russia