A year ago, the 700-year old walls of Mingary Castle were on the verge of collapse. The joints in the igneous sill on which the castle stands were opening up and the huge blocks of rock falling outwards, threatening to take the whole castle with them. Rocks from the upper parts of the curtain walls were falling into the courtyard, many of the lintels over the doors and windows of the north range were about to fail, access was so dangerous that the area was fenced off, and the occupants of the castle were pigeons, starlings, mice, and the occasional passing mink.
Today, the huge blocks of sill have been pinned so they won't fall and the curtain walls stabilised, extensive archaeological investigations have been carried out, the structure has been photographed and mapped to provide a detailed record for future research, the building has been sheathed in a network of scaffold so that every part of the walls can be easily reached, a start has been made on removing loose mortar and on the massive task of re-pointing, and a temporary roof has been constructed over the north range.
If all goes well, by the end of 2014 the castle will once again stand proudly in its position dominating the northern entrance to the Sound of Mull. Construction work will re-start on 6th January and, if there are no delays, by the end of this year the project should be completed and the castle ready for its new role as a top specification letting property. This will enable the castle to pay for its maintenance into the foreseeable future.
Progress so far has been possible because the Trustees have managed to raise enough money to finance it, but funds are now critically low. With the coming of the New Year, the Trustees are appealing once again for financial support so that the project can be completed on time. Please, if you can, donate something, however small, through
mydonate - there's a permanent link at top right of this page.
The Trustees wish all the friends and supporters of Mingary Castle a happy,
healthy and prosperous 2014.
Back in the 80s I got into Mingary through the Postern, and when looking at the entrance there was what looked like a pit dungeon to the left.. there is no mention of this in your blog. was I wrong ?
ReplyDeleteNo, you are absolutely right, there is a dungeon just within the west wall, where you describe it. It was mentioned in the blog a couple of times, once on 17th May 2013.
ReplyDelete