Eye of the Needle was a distinctive sandstone arch on the Missouri River near Fort Benton, Montana, beside LaBarge Rock in the Missouri Breaks. About 11 feet high and shaped like an inverted V, it was known at least as early as 1805, when Meriwether Lewis recorded it during the Lewis and Clark Expedition. In 1997 the arch was found collapsed, with its top section gone and nearby columns also down. The destruction was first blamed on vandalism and drew intense public attention, but later some writers and experts argued natural erosion and weathering were more likely. Its remains were left in place, and a replica was created near Fort Benton.