The Dragon’s Eye is a remarkable natural feature located on the picturesque Lofoten Islands of Norway. This captivating landform, shaped by the forces of nature over thousands of years, bears an uncanny resemblance to a reptilian eye. It’s a hollow within the rocks along Norway’s northwestern coastline, where a distinctive boulder sits atop a bed of white sand and algae, forming the eye’s pupil.
According to Dr. Atle Nesje, an associate professor of physical geography and quaternary geology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, the Dragon’s Eye is a type of glacial landform called a pothole. These potholes are thought to have formed beneath the massive Fennoscandian Ice Sheet, which covered Scandinavia during the last glacial maximum, approximately 20,000 years ago.
During the glacial period, meltwater carrying abrasive sediments flowed beneath the ice sheet, eroding the bedrock. This process, known as plastic deformation, created smooth-walled depressions in the bedrock, which could be straight, curved, or circular. The Dragon’s Eye, likely formed by turbulent meltwater currents concentrating abrasion and erosion in a circular pattern, is a prime example of this phenomenon.
As the meltwater slowed and disappeared, the coarse sediments settled out and became trapped within the pothole, potentially leading to the boulder now residing at the bottom of the Dragon’s Eye. The glacial retreat around 16,000 years ago exposed the bedrock and its potholes, including the Dragon’s Eye, which is made of gneiss, a colorful metamorphic rock that contributes to its fantastical appearance.
The Dragon’s Eye, approximately 5 feet (1.5 meters) across, offers a dynamic spectacle depending on the time of day and the tides. At high tide, waves wash over the rocks, depositing and removing sand from the hollow, causing the boulder to sometimes sit directly on the bedrock. The algae inside the eye also changes its appearance based on the season and lighting, adding to the captivating nature of this unique glacial formation.
