Scorching temperatures have lowered the level of the water in the Elbe River, and now visible are more than a dozen rocks used to record low water levels. Carved into the rocks are dates, the earliest of which is 1616. The inscription on one rock reads "When you see me, weep."

That particular stone has been a known entity for awhile. Among the dates etched into the stone are these: 1417, 1616, 1707, 1746, 1790, 1800, 1811, 1830, 1842, 1868, 1892, and 1893. The stone is seen more often than not, thanks to the relatively recent addition of a dam on an Elbe tributary.

As that stone and the others more recently found suggest, severe droughts are nothing new to north-central Europe. One thing new with this year's drought, however, was record-breaking temperatures, scientists said.

The stones can be seen near the northern Czech town of Decin, near the Czech-German border. Also found on the Delbe riverbed earlier this year were unexploded bombs dumped after World War II.

Scientists also warned that further reductions in water levels could hamper transportation on the river. That has already happened in Hungary, on the Danube River.

Also unearthed recently as a result of the drought was an ancient Irish henge.