The Gänseschnabel is a

natural monument A natural monument is a natural or natural/cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities or cultural significance. Under World Commission on Protected Areas guidelines, nat ...

north of

Ilfeld Ilfeld is a village and a former municipality in the district of Nordhausen, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated at the south foot of the Harz, at the entrance to the Bährethal, north from Nordhausen by the railway to Wernigerode. Since 1 Ja ...

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and larg ...

, Germany. It is a striking, free-standing rock pillar made of porphyry, which resembles the beak of a goose (or duck) and from which there is a comprehensive view of the Behre valley looking towards Netzkater. There is a legend connected with the Gänseschnabel about a spellbound goose girl who had fallen in love with a monk from the monastery at Ilfeld. A witch went to transform the monk in a rock when he waved to her from the other side of the valley. As the goose girl burst into tears, the witch turned her to stone as well.

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* Rock formations of Thuringia Natural monuments in Thuringia Rock formations of the Harz Nordhausen (district) {{Nordhausen-geo-stub