Bell Rock Light
From lighthouses
Arbroath, Scotland, U.K.
Built: 1811
Automated: 1988
This is the oldest existing rock lighthouse in the British Isles. The Bell, or Inchcape, Rock is a long, treacherous reef lying in the North Sea, 12 miles southeast of Arbroath, in the path of vessels traveling to and from the Firths of Tay and Forth. Excavation of the rock began in 1807, but the light wasn't completed until 1811. The tower is made of stone quarried from the Dundee and Aberdeen areas. It is 115 feet tall, 42 feet in diameter at the base, tapering to 15 feet in diameter at the top. It is of solid dovetailed masonry for the first 30 feet, half of which is below high water, and located above are 5 chambers and the lightroom. The original optic consisted of 24 parabolic reflectors 25 inches in diameter. These were later replaced by a first-order Fresnel lens. A Dalen optic was installed in 1988. This light was designed by Robert Stevenson and is still active today.
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Lighthouses: A Photographic Journey
- Conceived and Developed by David S. Carter
- Photographs by Donald W. Carter
- Text by Diana K. Carter, Donald W. Carter & David S. Carter
Copyright © 1995-2011 David S. Carter, Donald W. Carter, & Diana K. Carter. All rights reserved. Reproduction by any means, physical or electronic, in part or in full, without the express permission of the authors, is strictly prohibited.
This article was last modified on 6/4/2009.
