Kilmodan Sculptured Stones

At Clachan of Glendaruel, in the quiet valley of the River Ruel in Cowal, a small white building at the back of Kilmodan churchyard shelters a collection of carved grave slabs gathered from the graveyard around St Modan's Church. There are nine late-medieval West Highland slabs and one dated 1636, nearly all in the style common to mid-Argyll, Lorn and Cowal. Their carvings include interlace and twining plant stems, swords and tools, among them what look like a blacksmith's tongs, a deer hunt, a unicorn, animals fighting with axes and spears, and human figures. The 1636 slab commemorates Donald McCloy, minister here for forty years, who resigned in old age as English-speaking Lowlanders moved into the parish. An eleventh stone, once taken for the head of a medieval cross, is now thought to be a pillar worn into shape as a tethering post. The stones are seen through a gated doorway, and the churchyard has many fine later gravestones. Drive down the narrow lane to the church car park.