THE MAKING OF THE OLD MAN OF HOY

1 Waves beat against a narrow promontory of Old Red Sandstone, wearing away at either side until they start to form a cave at the base.

2 The cave gets larger and larger until, sometime after 1750, the roof falls in, leaving only the sandstone stack.

3 The stack originally has two ‘legs’ formed by an arch which is soon washed away by the waves. The Old Man is left standing, but who knows for how much longer?