Al Naslaa Rock
In the Saudi desert, a great sandstone rock is split down the middle by a crack so straight it looks as if it was cut with a laser.
What was reported
Near the Tayma oasis in north-western Saudi Arabia stands Al Naslaa, a sandstone outcrop about 6 metres tall, divided into two halves by a perfectly straight, narrow gap. The two halves balance on small natural pedestals. Ancient carvings of horses and people decorate one side.
Photographs of it spread widely online, with claims that it must have been cut by people or by an ancient laser.
Explanations offered
Geologists say the rock split along a natural weakness, a joint or fault line, and that wind carrying sand then smoothed the crack. Such straight cracks are common in sandstone. The pedestals were carved out by wind erosion at ground level.
- When
- Ancient
- Where
- Tayma oasis, Tabuk Province, Saudi Arabia
- Witnesses
- Visitors and geologists
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.