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Bow Fiddle Rock in Portknockie, Scotland
Rocky Portknockie
Pareidolia is the term for noticing familiar faces and shapes in natural phenomena, and it comes up often in the naming of rock formations like this one off Portknockie, Scotland. This 15-metre chunk of quartzite poking above the North Sea waves is said to look like the very tip of a violin bow, lending it the name Bow Fiddle Rock. And what about 'Portknockie'? That naming history is a little less straightforward – the Gaelic word 'chnocaidh', meaning 'hill', became 'knockie' through anglicisation.
Rocky Portknockie
Pareidolia is the term for noticing familiar faces and shapes in natural phenomena, and it comes up often in the naming of rock formations like this one off Portknockie, Scotland. This 15-metre chunk of quartzite poking above the North Sea waves is said to look like the very tip of a violin bow, lending it the name Bow Fiddle Rock. And what about 'Portknockie'? That naming history is a little less straightforward – the Gaelic word 'chnocaidh', meaning 'hill', became 'knockie' through anglicisation.
© abzee / E+ / Getty Images 2026-09-11 08:45:52 :