The Gänseschnabel is a natural monument

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....

 north of Ilfeld

Ilfeld

Ilfeld is a 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.-Establishments in 1911:...

 in Thuringia

Thuringia

The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....

, Germany. It is a striking, free-standing rock pillar made of porphyry

Porphyry (geology)

Porphyry is a variety of igneous rock consisting of large-grained crystals, such as feldspar or quartz, dispersed in a fine-grained feldspathic matrix or groundmass. The larger crystals are called phenocrysts...

, 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.

Sources