Panská skála - Kamenický Šenov, Czech Republic
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N 50° 46.184 E 014° 29.032
33U E 463604 N 5624345
Panská skála (also called The Devil's Organ [CZ: Certovy varhany]) is exceptional geological monument
Waymark Code: WM15GJT
Location: Ústecký kraj, Czechia
Date Posted: 01/03/2022
Views: 11
An interesting geological formation is located in the northern part of Bohemia - in the area called the Czech Central Highlands.
The rock was formed by volcanic activity in the ancient Mesozoic and Tertiary periods. The rock was also formed by the shift of the so-called continental plates.
"Panská skála is a natural landmark situated near the town of Kamenický Šenov in the Liberec Region, in northern Bohemia. The name can be translated as “the Lord’s Rock”. Due to its appearance, it is colloquially known also as Varhany (“pipe organs”). Its hexagonal basalt columns reach up to 12 m (39 ft) and resemble the ones in the famous Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland.
Panská skála covers an area of 1.26 km² (0.48 sq mi) near the road from Kamenický Šenov to Nový Bor. The base of the rock is at approx. 560 m (1837 ft) above sea level and the peak at 597 m (1,958 ft) above sea level. It is estimated that the basalt columns emerged about 30 million years ago, as a result of volcanic activity. There is a small lake in the depression at the foot of the rock.
Panská skála was declared a protected geological monument in 1895, as the first such site in Czechia (at that time part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire). However, the protection wasn’t very strict and the rock continued to be used as a quarry. In 1914, the authorities purchased the area from its private owners and prohibited further rock extraction. After World War II, the Czechoslovak government extended the protection of Panská skála. Nowadays, it is a major tourist attraction of Kamenický Šenov."
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