22nd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Wine and Crystal

The title of the photo is "Wine and Crystal". The Black Sea is in the frame. A piece of rock is a mineral - argillite. Argillite is a mass of clay that has hardened as a result of millions of years of mineralization. White veins formed when the hardening clay cracked under pressure. Over time, water washed minerals - quartz, mica - between the layers. They also hardened later. The entire mass ended up in the sea as a result of a landslide. Over time, the edges of the stone were smoothed by the surf. A storm threw the stone onto the shore. I was walking along the seashore and saw this charming work of nature, shaped like a heart.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 01.2024
Date Uploaded: 11.2024
Photo Location: Anapa, Russia
Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
Copyright: © Eugene Veijas