Spectacle Rock

Spectacle Rock is a specific rock formation which has repeatedly appeared in many Zelda games, with it first debuting in the original. It typically appears as a mountain with twin peaks that may or may not be adjoined.

The Legend of Zelda
In on Nintendo Entertainment System, Spectacle Rock is found in northern Hyrule in the central western portion of Death Mountain. It is the location of Ganon's lair in the first quest. However, in order to enter, Link must bomb the southern side of the base of its left peak to reveal the entrance.

The Adventure of Link
In, Spectacle Rock is found in Death Mountain in the southwestern region of Hyrule and both of its peaks contain and are represented by caves on the map. Its eastern peak contains a cave where the Hammer is obtained after Link works his way east through its bottom level. Its western peak contains a cave that is initially covered by a rock that Link destroys after acquiring the Hammer. Unlike the eastern peak's cave that is entered laterally, the western cave is underground where the opening is on top of the peak and is actually a hole Link falls into where he obtains a Magic Container. Therefore, both peaks of Spectacle Rock in The Adventure of Link contain items.

A Link To The Past
In, Spectacle Rock is situated on top of Death Mountain in the Light World. Being Death Mountain's highest point, it is an obstacle blocking the path to its north that leads to the Tower of Hera. The center of the adjoining bridge between its peaks contains a cave that leads to lower elevations on Death Mountain. Its counterpart in the Dark World mirror of Death Mountain is buried under volcanic sediment, as its outline is clearly visible and multiple dried up lava flows surround it. To get to the path north of Spectacle Rock in the Light World, Link must first travel to the Dark World and stand within the outline of its counterpart. Using the Magic Mirror within this area sends Link on top of Spectacle Rock in the Light World where he can acquire the Piece of Heart on its eastern peak and leap down to the path north of it leading to the Tower of Hera.

Link's Awakening
Although the setting of is Koholint Island located in the Wind Fish's dream, it is possible that a certain mountain formation in the Tal Tal Mountain Range acts a tribute to Spectacle Rock, which is not far-fetched considering the game's referential nature. Between Mt. Tamaranch and Turtle Rock, this structure mimics Spectacle Rock in both appearance and function — as in A Link to the Past, a cavern in the middle of the rock grants access to higher elevations of the mount from the blocked entrance at its foot.

Ocarina of Time
In, Spectacle Rock is located inside Death Mountain Crater in front of the entrance to the Fire Temple. Its appearance is more conic or heaped, and a Piece of Heart rests on top of one of the rocks. Volcanic smoke billows out of the tips of each rock, though there are no natural chimney stacks visible at the peaks. It is evident from its structure and that of the Fire Temple that the upper floors of the Fire Temple extend into the interior of these two mounds.

Majora's Mask


In Majora's Mask, Spectacle Rock is most notably present as the path between the Mountain Village and Goron Village in the northern Snowhead region of Termina, where the entrance to the Goron Racetrack is also located. Referred to by the Goron Elder as the Twin Islands, there are actually three islands in this area, though the third is smaller and makes up part of the connection between the two "eyeglasses." While the double igloo structure of the Goron Shrine in Goron Village arguably also resembles Spectacle Rock, the Twin Islands are a more plausible candidate in that they are arranged horizontally on the overworld map and that they have a distinct bridge structure connecting the two main islands. Like Link's Awakening, the game takes place outside of Hyrule, and thus, it is not the same rock structure.

Oracle Series
References to Spectacle Rock can be seen in islands in both and. In Oracle of Ages, the island is named Eyeglass Island harbors a library. In Oracle of Seasons, twin islands appear on Eyeglass Lake.

The Wind Waker


In, Spectacle Island is the Great Sea's equivalent to Spectacle Rock after Hyrule has been flooded. Its appearance is understandable in that Hyrule's mountaintops were said to have formed the islands of the Great Sea, and Spectacle Rock was itself one of the higher points of elevation in Hyrule. It topographically appears as two circular stone structures with paths spiraling up their sides and a wooden bridge spanning the gap between them. Atop the eastern structure, Link can play a cannon minigame managed by Salvatore. A blue ChuChu also can be found on the beach under the wooden bridge. Spectacle Isle is strangely distant from Dragon Roost Island, which is often believed by fans to be the equivalent to Death Mountain. This suggests that either Dragon Roost Island is not Death Mountain, or that Spectacle Isle is not Spectacle Rock, as the two locations necessarily share geography.

Four Swords Adventures
Although not specifically named, the battle with the Helmaroc King on the top of Death Mountain takes place around two large rocky hills, very similar in appearance to that of Spectacle Rock. Each rock has a small entrance, and contain Keese. Defeating the Helmaroc King requires that the Links cause him to crash into the rocks by using Bombs, at which point they can go inside to destroy his mask with a Hammer.

Twilight Princess
In, Spectacle Rock is never identified by name. However, there some conspicuous candidates:
 * Two pillars inside a crater found on Death Mountain, which is home to the mighty Gorons. Unlike Spectacle Rock in, these pillars do not rise out of an open lava lake, and they are noticeably unequal in size; but they are still active volcanic features, with many fumeroles and an adjacent hot spring.  However, the two pillars' strikingly unequal sizes make it possible they are not Spectacle Rock.
 * Rather than two pillars, two active volcanic pit craters of similar size and shape that may be the hollow interiors of Spectacle Rock whose ceilings have since collapsed. One crater contains the two smaller aforementioned pillars where the Gorons live along with their many fumeroles and hot springs.  The other crater is found in the center of the map of the Goron Mines north from the mines' entrance, and contains an open lava lake beneath massive magnetic machinery.  Potentially complicating this theory, there is a third pit crater even further north within the Goron Mines, but it is of a different size and shape, is filled with a lake of cool water, and has no fumeroles or other signs of active volcanic activity.

Skyward Sword
In SS undefined, Spectacle Rock is never identified by name. But there are some candidates:
 * While not an accessible location in the game, two pillars can be seen in the Eldin Province part of the map screen, sitting between Eldin Volcano and the Volcano Summit.
 * There are two candidates within the Fire Sanctuary:
 * On the map, two areas appear in dark grey, which some players believed correspond to hollow interiors of Spectacle Rock (as with the Fire Temple in ).
 * Just south of the boss door, there is a lava pit and a Leap of Faith platform between two large rock faces. Leaping toward the left (east) makes it possible to enter a tall round hollow room, again similar to the hollow interior of Spectacle Rock in Ocarina of Time.  However, no corresponding right (west) chamber below the Leap of Faith platform can be entered.

A Link Between Worlds


is another game that doesn't identify Spectacle Rock by name, though its appearance is equivalent to that in several games that preceded it. It is once again located on Death Mountain in Hyrule and its location corresponds to where it is in A Link to the Past where it is just west of the Tower of Hera. However in this game, Hyrule's Spectacle Rock is an active volcano that erupts and spews boulders including those with Rupees embedded in them. The base of its western peak contains a cave from which Link emerges after climbing Death Mountain from lower elevations. Upon exiting from this cave, he must go east after Wall Merging and pop out on the adjacent path to get to the Tower of Hera. Similar to A Link to the Past, the center of the adjoining bridge between its peaks contains a cave, but in A Link Between Worlds the cave is below its base and has no interior to be explored. Instead this cave passes through the lowest point of Spectacle Rock's base where a Piece of Heart is found behind it. To get to this cave, Link must exit the cave at the base of Spectacle Rock's western peak, Wall Merge, and go east, popping out halfway between the peaks. The Weather Vane by the Tower of Hera's entrance is the nearest warp point to Hyrule's Spectacle Rock.



A Link Between Worlds has a second Spectacle Rock in Lorule's icy Death Mountain. The Spectacle Rock in Lorule is not an active volcano like its Hyrule counterpart, but is completely frozen over as a result of the endless winter conditions. The lava flows of the once active volcano in Lorule had frozen over and geological activities resulted in its eruptions accumulating to the point of burying Spectacle Rock and the area around its perimeter in ice and rock. So much accumulation of volcanic material and ice happened that the area to the north of this Spectacle Rock is at a higher elevation that Spectacle Rock itself. The outline of the mountain is visible and its shape matches that of its Hyrule counterpart. Also like its counterpart, it is located just west of the Treacherous Tower which has a Weather Vane by its entrance that is the nearest warp point to Lorule's Spectacle Rock.