Bass Rock

The Bass Rock, or simply the Bass ( ), is an island in the outer part of the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland. Approximately 2 km (1 mi) offshore, and 5 km (3 mi) north-east of North Berwick, it is a steep-sided volcanic plug, 107 m (351 ft) at its highest point, and is home to a large colony of gannets. The rock is uninhabited, but historically has been settled by an 8th-century Christian hermit, and later was the site of an important castle, which after the Commonwealth period was used as a prison. The island belongs to RSPB Scotland, being previously owned by Hew Hamilton-Dalrymple, whose family acquired it in 1706, and previously to the Lauder family for almost six centuries. The Bass Rock Lighthouse was constructed on the rock in 1902, and the remains of a chapel survive. The Bass Rock features in many works of fiction, including Lion Let Loose by Nigel Tranter, Catriona by Robert Louis Stevenson, The Lion Is Rampant by the Scottish novelist Ross Laidlaw and The New Confessions by William Boyd. Most recently it features prominently in The Bass Rock by Evie Wyld, which won the 2021 Stella Prize.