Stag Rock

For most people a trip to Bamburgh usually entails visiting the mighty Bamburgh Castle or even a peep into the Grace Darling Museum, but there are few little curiosities hidden away too. Just below Bamburgh Lighthouse there is a White Stag painted on the rocks at Blackrocks Point, which is also known as Stag Rock.

Now you might be wondering why a stag and a startled looking lighthouse are best pals, so we did a bit of digging to try and find out where the artwork actually came from. We failed to find a definitive answer, but strap in for a few stories that are a mix of folklore and a bit of historical guesswork.

1. Based on a real stag

A legend among local folk said that one day a white stag (which is pretty rare) was being chased by hunters from nearby Spindlestone and chose to plunge into the sea here rather than be caught. The painting is said to commemorate that dramatic moment.

2. POWs

Another story says the stag was painted by Italian prisoners of war held locally during the Second World War.

3. Named after the place

There is also an account, shared via local memory and a letter to a regional magazine, that a local artist painted it around 1914. The name 'Stag Rock' as a place name appears in some maps from the late 1800s, so the stag has long been associated with the spot even if we do not know who first painted it.

4. Saint Aiden

St Aidan, you know, that 7th century monk closely associated with Lindisfarne? Well it was said he saved a hunted stag by making it invisible through prayer, allowing it to escape from hounds and hunters.

Whichever you believe there are some cracking stories behind it. You never know, Barry might have had a few too many shandies at the Lord Crewe and just daubed in on one night.

Anyway, the stag image is regularly repainted so it looks pristine, often at the same time the lighthouse gets its maintenance.