World Art Utopia

Wave Rock

Wave Rock near Hyden, Western Australia: a long curved granite wall streaked in dark stripes, shaped like an ocean wave about to break
Artwork FileHyden, Western Australia, Australia

Wave Rock

SeenJan 2018

Natural rock formation · Hyden, Western Australia, Australia

Photo: SKY-PuLeun / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Wave Rock is a curved granite cliff on the north face of Hyden Rock in Western Australia's wheatbelt. Its shape resembles a breaking ocean wave, and Guinness lists it as the largest flared slope. Source Source Source Reported

Photographed Jan 2018. Evidence date: 2018-01-08. Source Reported

💡 4 things to know

  1. Weathered into a waveAustralian Museum describes weathering and water erosion; Guinness instead stresses acidic soil weathering. We lean toward the Museum geologist’s account and keep the different descriptions visible. Source Source Conflicting
  2. A world record slopeGuinness World Records lists Wave Rock as the largest flared slope, about 1,210–1,320 square metres exposed. Source Reported
  3. Streaks of colourWater running down the face left red, brown, yellow and grey stains of carbonates and iron hydroxide, per the Museum. Source Reported
  4. A wall on topA wall built in 1928 halfway up Hyden Rock funnels rainwater to a dam; it was renovated in 1951, says Wikipedia. Source Reported

📍 Where it is

North face of Hyden Rock, about 3 km east of Hyden · Hyden, Western Australia, Australia Source Reported

Open in Maps

Map pin is approximate; use the named site or address to locate the formation.

🗓️ Sightings

  1. 20188 Jan

    Photo taken

  2. 202521 Oct

    Australian Museum page updated

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

✅ The facts

Formation type
Natural granite cliff, no artist Source Checked
Nyungar name
Katter Kich Source Reported
Length
110 m Source Checked
Height
Museum: 15 m; Guinness: 11–12 m. We favor the Museum geologist’s account but retain both measurements. Source Source Conflicting
Age of the granite
About 2.7 billion years, an estimate given by Australian Museum Source Reported
Record
Largest flared slope (Guinness World Records) Source Checked
Rainwater wall
Built December 1928, renovated 1951 Source Reported
Location
North face of Hyden Rock, Western Australia Source Checked

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Photo: SKY-PuLeun / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Last checked: 26 October 2026 · How we verify art