As soon as they did not call the rock Hvitserkur (Hvítserkur), which is located in Iceland: elephant, mammoth, dragon, dinosaur! But Icelanders themselves have their own opinion on this matter, which is reflected in ancient epics and legends: the Hvitserkur rock is a petrified troll who did not have time to hide in his cave before the first sun rays appeared, and therefore turned into a stone. So what exactly is Hvitserkur?
Hvitserkur is a basalt rock off the coast of Iceland’s Vatnsnes Peninsula. Scientists agree that this bizarre rock formation is the remains of an ancient volcano, which at one time was active. Erosion has done its job, century after century, destroying its rocks. As a result, from our time only 15-meter rock of bizarre shape remained from our volcano.
The impact of external factors continues to affect the state of Hvitserkur. The water gradually erodes the base of the rock, and, in order to avoid the loss of a surprising formation, it was decided to reinforce it with concrete. Of course, the appearance of this suffers, but the lifetime of the rock increases.
Translated from the Icelandic Hvítserkur means “white shirt”. Indeed, on the rock you can find white spots. But with geological features they are not connected in any way – their reason lies in the birds nesting here, or rather, in the products of their vital activity. A rock similar to a troll-drinking tiger was chosen for nesting by foolish and moevki.
The magic of the rock Hvitserkur appears especially at sunset. The soft rays of the setting sun blend reality and fantasy together, blurring the boundaries between them. And now the eyes of the admired observers appear not basalt rock, but the same petrified monster from ancient legends, doomed to quench their thirst forever.
