The Old Harry Rocks are two chalk sea stacks located at Handfast Point, on the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset, southern England.
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Old Harry Rocks lie directly east of Studland, about 4 kilometres northeast of Swanage, and about 10 kilometres south of the large towns of Poole and Bournemouth.
The chalk headlands of the Ballard Downs are owned by the National Trust. The rocks can be viewed from the Dorset section of the South West Coastal Path.
The Jurassic Coast stretches over a distance of 153 kilometres (95 mi), from Orcombe Point near Exmouth, in the west, to just beyond the great chalk headland of Ballard Down and Old Harry Rocks here in the east.[1] The coastal exposures along the coastline comprise a continuous sequence of Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous rock formations spanning approximately 185 million years of the Earth's history. The rock layers along the Jurassic Coast are tilted towards the east. The oldest part of the coast is found at its west end, while progressively younger rocks form the cliffs here to the east. Old Harry Rocks mark the most easterly point of the Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The downlands of Ballard Down are formed of chalk with some bands of flint, and were formed approximately 65 million years ago. The bands of stone have been gradually eroded over the centuries, some of the earlier stacks having fallen (Old Harry's original wife fell in 1896), while new ones have been formed by the breaching of narrow isthmuses.[2] Across the water to the east the Needles on the Isle of Wight are usually visible. These are also part of the same chalk band and only a few thousand years ago were connected to Ballard Down.
To form the stacks, the sea gradually eroded along the joints and bedding planes where the softer chalk meets harder bedrock of the rock formations to create a cave. This eventually eroded right through to create an arch. The arch subsequently collapsed to leave the stacks of Old Harry, No Man's Land and the gap of St Lucas' Leap. The large outcrop of rock at the end of the cliffs is often referred to as "No Man's Land".
Old Harry itself is now also threatened by erosion, particularly at the foot of the rock. There is a desire to preserve the rocks and protect them from erosion and many teams have been working on saving the formations, including the team headed by Dr C. P. Buckle of the University of Strasbourg.
There are two stories about the naming of the rocks. One legend says that the Devil (traditionally known euphemistically as "Old Harry") had a sleep on the rocks.
Another local legend says that the rocks were named after Harry Paye, the infamous Poole pirate, who stored his contraband nearby.