The Dog Stone

The Dog Stone, or to give its Gaelic name "Clach a' Choin", is a large rock feature on the northern edge of Oban with connections to an ancient sea as well as to one of the most famous Celtic myths around.

The stone stands just to the south of Dunollie Castle and while on dry land now, it was once under the sea. The Dog Stone is composed of a type of rock known as conglomerate, which is a type of sedimentary rock comprising round pebbles and gravel that have been cemented together by finer muds and sands. The Dog Stone was likely formed around 415 million years ago during the Devonian period.

Over time this conglomerate was compacted and turned into stone and would have stood as a column in the midst of the ancient sea being carved and eroded to the shape it is today. As the intervening millions of years passed, the sea levels would have changed and the land would have lifted as ice sheets melted (isostatic rebound), raising the sea stack above the contemporary sea level.

It was renowned Scottish Geologist, Hugh Miller, who first brought scientific attention to the Dog Stone in 1857, when he demonstrated that it was evidence of the post-glacial raising of the Scottish coastline. It is now an important site for understanding Quaternary geology.

The other side to the Dog Stone is its link to the legendary giant Fingal, or Fionn Mac Cumhaill as he is known in Ireland. Fingal was a heroic warrior and leader of the Fianna, and like all good heroes he had a faithful hound called Bran. Bran was also famed for his speed, loyalty and magical abilities!

The legend states that whenever Fingal nipped over to the Hebridean Islands to do some hunting, he would tie the giant dog to the Dog Stone (hence its name). Bran, would get restless and strain at his tether, and due to his great strength, this resulted in the base of the stone becoming worn away and narrower than the rest. Apparently if you listen very carefully on a stormy night, you can still hear the ghostly howl of Bran...