Dalmally stones dedication brings end to 28-year project

The dedication service at Glenorchy Church in Dalmally marks the end of a 28-year project to see the stones safely conserved.

This event  comes at the start of a week-long Clan Gregor celebration of the Covid-delayed clan society’s bicentenary which should have happened in 2022. 

More than 140 people are travelling from all over the world – from America and Canada to Australia and New Zealand – to attend.

A number of them will be at the dedication of the stones. 

Among those visiting are 22 donors, or their relatives, who have contributed more than £50,000 towards the £81,000 that was needed to finish the conservation project, as well as giving funds towards on-going archaeological exploration of MacGregor sites in the glen.

The rest of the funds for the stones came from Historic Environment Scotland (HES), the Pilgrim Trust and the Strathmartine Trust. 

Amy Eastwood, head of grants at HES, said: “We are delighted to support the Clan Gregor Society with £26,813 funding as part of our Historic Environment Support Fund. 

“The project will help to protect and preserve the historic 14th  century stones, as well as make them more accessible, providing engagement opportunities for the public and local community.”

The Dalmally Stones are the only material items the clan has from the medieval time, after the clan name was banned by proscription for 171 years under James I and VI.

Glenorchy church is the third church on the site. The original medieval church was replaced in 1615, and again in 1811. 

The medieval church’s altar was in the east side, surrounded by raised tombstones which were the graves of the earliest recorded MacGregor Chiefs. 

In 1996, the Clan Gregor Society identified seven of these gravestones which had been removed during the rebuilding of the church.

“These stones were then appropriated by various people for their own use in the graveyard, and as a result, over time, the stones eroded through the action of weather and the use of rotary lawnmowers.

“Their status as scheduled monuments and the proof that these were the only physical relics of the Clan Gregor from the medieval period, a situation amplified by the persecution and proscription of the clan which took place from 1603 to 1774, all lent an urgency to taking action now to preserve them from further decay,” said Professor Richard E. McGregor who is chairman of the Clan Gregor Society.

The programme of events on July 15 begins with an illustrated presentation in Dalmally Community Hall at 10.30am, followed by the dedication in the church in front of all the gathering attendees, members of the Kirk session, Dalmally Historical Association, the community and representatives from Argyll and Bute Council.