It was discovered by British Graham Land Expedition (BGLE), 1934–37, and named "Lumus Reef" after one of the expedition cats, the only one to survive the Antarctic winter.

The BGLE naming has been accepted because of long use, though a change in generic term, from reef to rock, was made on recommendation by the UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee in 1971.

[4] Lumus Rock was named after the ship's cat, Lummo, present on the Penola, a three-masted schooner of the British Graham Land Expedition, visiting the Wilhelm Archipelago from 1934 to 1937.

Lummo survived the three-year expedition and died in Woking, Surrey, England during the Second World War.

[6] The geological map of Antarctica lists Mesozoic volcanic rocks and granitoids in the area.