Puntukas is the second-largest

boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In c ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. It is situated some south of

Anykščiai Anykščiai (; see other names) is a ski resort town in Lithuania, west of Utena. The Roman Catholic Church of St. Matthias in Anykščiai is the tallest church in Lithuania, with spires measuring in height. Anykščiai has a resort status i ...

on the left bank of the

Šventoji River Šventoji (literally: feminine gender of ''the holy'') can refer to these objects in Lithuania: * Šventoji River, 246-kilometer long tributary of Neris *Šventoji River (Baltic), 73-kilometer long tributary of the Baltic Sea *Šventoji, Lithuania ...

. It was believed to be the largest stone in Lithuania until the discovery of Barstyčiai stone in the

Skuodas district Skuodas District Municipality is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. It is the only territory whose Council is using the Samogitian language Samogitian ( sgs, žemaitiu kalba, link=no or sometimes ', ''žemaitiu šnekta'' or '; lt, že ...

in 1957. Puntukas is a

glacial erratic A glacial erratic is glacially deposited rock differing from the type of rock native to the area in which it rests. Erratics, which take their name from the Latin word ' ("to wander"), are carried by glacial ice, often over distances of hundred ...

—it was brought by glaciers during the last glacial period (18th–12th millennium BC) probably from

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. It measures in length, in width, and in depth (including underground). It weighs about 265 tons. It is made of Rapakivi granite. Its reddish mass includes large crystals of

potassium Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosphe ...

feldspar Feldspars are a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, also containing other cations such as sodium, calcium, potassium, or barium. The most common members of the feldspar group are the ''plagioclase'' (sodium-calcium) feldsp ...

surrounded by green rings of

oligoclase Oligoclase is a rock-forming mineral belonging to the plagioclase feldspars. In chemical composition and in its crystallographic and physical characters it is intermediate between albite ( Na Al Si3 O8) and anorthite ( CaAl2Si2O8). The albite:an ...

. In 1943, sculptor Bronius Pundzius engraved portraits and quotes from last wills of Lithuanian pilots Steponas Darius and Stasys Girėnas for the 10th anniversary of their deaths during the transatlantic flight with '' Lituanica''. A local legend has it that

velnias Veles,; Serbo-Croatian, Czech, Slovak, Russian, Slovenian: ''Veles''; Ruthenian and Old Church Slavonic: Велесъ; be, Вялес, translit=Vialies also known as Volos, is a major god of earth, waters, livestock, and the underworld in ...

(a devil in the Lithuanian mythology) carried the stone to destroy the

Anykščiai Church Church of Apostle Evangelist St. Matthew in Anykščiai ( lt, Anykščių Šv. apaštalo evangelisto Mato bažnyčia) is a red brick Neo-Gothic church in Anykščiai, Lithuania. The Church is situated on the right bank of the Šventoji River. The ...

, however a rooster crowed. The devil disappeared back into the underworld, leaving only Puntukas behind. The legend was featured in the famous poem '' Anykščių šilelis'' by

Antanas Baranauskas Antanas Baranauskas ( la, Antonius Baranovski, pl, Antoni Baranowski; 17 January 1835 – 26 November 1902) was a Lithuanian poet, mathematician and Catholic bishop of Sejny. Baranauskas is best known as the author of the Lithuanian poem '' An ...

. According to another story, a brave Lithuanian warrior Puntukas was killed and was burned (a usual pagan custom) on the stone; since then it is known as Puntukas stone. Other legends claim that the stone was a pagan shrine and that oaks growing around are relics of the sacred groves.

References

Natural monuments of Lithuania Glacial erratics in Lithuania Anykščiai District Municipality {{coord, 55, 29, 3, N, 25, 3, 31, E, display=title, region:LT_type:landmark