Alternative Names Loch Shiel, St. Finan's Chapel; St Finnan's Church
Site type CHAPEL, BELL
Canmore ID 22686
Site Number NM76NE 1.00
NGR NM 75204 68276
Council HIGHLAND
Parish ARISAIG AND MOIDART
Former Region HIGHLAND
Former District LOCHABER
Former County INVERNESS-SHIRE

Canmore Mapping
View this site on a map

---

Recording Your Heritage Online

Chapel, c.1500 Believed to have been built to replace a wooden structure by Allan MacRuari, 4th Chief of Clanranald, "the dread and terror of all neighbouring clans". Abandoned 17th century, since when all dressings have been robbed. The rubble walls still enclose a stone altar slab, with a seamless bronze bell of Early Christian type (possibly 10th century), a small cross in a niche, plus various important graveslabs, including one much weathered example of the Iona School, c. late 15th century, depicting a sword and foliage scrolls. Among the many monuments scattering Eilean Fhianain in the shelter of hawthorn, larch and Scots pine are several late medieval graveslabs and a group of weathered cruciform stones, probably 18th century.

Taken from "Western Seaboard: An Illustrated Architectural Guide", by Mary Miers, 2008. Published by the Rutland Press http://www.rias.org.uk

---

Archaeological Notes

NM76NE 1.00 75204 68276

NM76NE 1.01 Centred NM 75224 68301 Burial-ground

(NM 7520 6827) St. Finnan's Church (NR) (Remains of)
Burying Ground (NAT)
OS 6" map, Inverness-shire, 2nd ed., (1901).

Little is known of the early history of the chapel of Eilean Fhianain. It is perhaps built on the site of a cell which St. Finan had upon the island in the 7th century and the builder is believed to have been Alan MacRuaridh, one of the early Clan Ranald chiefs. The island was the burying place of the Clan Ranalds until the end of the 16th century.
The chapel became a ruin by the mid-17th century. The altar, however, remains, and on it stands a 6" high D.A. bell.
A circular brass brooch found in the burial ground was donated to the NMAS in 1896.
Proc Soc Antiq Scot 1896; M E M Donaldson 1923; W J Watson 1926; S Gordon 1935.

St. Finan's Chapel (locally accepted name) is oriented E-W and measures 21.0m by 5.6m within a wall which is 0.9m thick and c. 2.8m maximum height. In the N wall are the lower halves of four windows, and near the E end is a square-headed aumbry. In the W wall is the lower part of a window and in the S wall the lower part of three windows, and towards its W end a doorway. The altar and bell remain intact at the E end.
The interior has been used for burials.
Visited by OS (R L) 3 June 1970.

A contour survey of Eilean Fhianain was undertaken after the clearing of the thick scrub that has obscured the island in recent years. In consultation with Dorothy Low of Highland Regional Council a number of gravestones, crosses, the chapel and other monuments were mapped. Sponsor: Highland Regional Council
CFA 1992.

This island, which takes its name from one of the saints bearing the Irish name Finan (a), is situated about 200m from both the N and S banks of Loch Shiel. It measures about 200m from N to S by 180m and has steep sides rising to an undulating summit-area which has been extensively used for burials by the adjacent Protestant and Roman Catholic communities of Sunart and Moidart respectively (b). The ruined medieval church near the W edge of the summit contains a cast bronze bell of Early Christian type (c), as well as a graveslab and cross-head, both of late medieval date. A female effigy of the same period lies near the N end of the summit, close to a group of large simple cruciform stones which are probably of 18th-century date (d). A cross-marked gravemarker (no.1) stands in the same area, and a small cruciform stone of uncertain period (no.2) was recorded in 1974 but has since disappeared (e).
(1) Tapered slab of local flagstone, 0.7m in visible height by 0.35m at the head and 55mm thick. On the E face there is incised a Latin cross, 0.17m high and 0.14m across the arms, set on a pedestal formed by a slightly curved horizontal bar 100mm long and two vertical bars 70mm high.
(2) Cruciform stone with tapered shaft and side-arms, about 0.52m high by 0.22m across the arms. At the centre of one face there is an incised Latin cross, 48mm high and 20mm in span.
Footnotes:
(a) W J Watson 1926, 285-6.
(b) The monuments in the S part include an early 18th-century slab with skeleton, bearing the initials D MD. These cast doubt on its traditional identification as the grave of the Rev Alexander MacDonald ('Maighstir Alasdair', d.1724), father of the celebrated Gaelic poet of the same name (C Macdonald 1997, 123).
(c) C Bourke 1984, 464-8, citing Irish parallels of c.900. See idem 1997, Columba, 175-6, for the drop of a 12th-century crosier, found on the N shore of Loch Shiel near the island and now displayed in the Museum of Scotland (H.1993.634).
(d) For the tradition that the crosses were quarried by Donald Mor MacVarish, see A Cameron 1957. One of these is illustrated in T S Muir 1885, 77.
(e) The Commissioners are indebted to Mr I Thornber for depositing photographs, on which the drawing is based, in the NMRS (IN/1802-3).
I Fisher 2001.

---

Architectural Notes

REFERENCE
National Library, Country Life 26 December 1941 - photograph

Notes and Activities

Books and References

Bourke, C (1984) 'The hand-bells of the early Scottish church', Proc Soc Antiq Scot, vol.113
Page(s): 467

Bourke, C (ed.) (1997) Studies in the cult of St Columba, Dublin
Page(s): 175-6 Held at RCAHMS C.1.5.BOU

CFA (1992o) 'Eilean Fhianain, Loch Shiel (Arisaig and Moidart parish): ecclesiastical site', Discovery Excav Scot
Page(s): 42

Cameron, A (1957) St Finan's Isle: Eilean Fhianain,its Story

Donaldson, M E M (1923) Wanderings in the Western Highlands and Islands, Revision Paisley
Page(s): 30 Held at RCAHMS D.6.DON

Fisher, I (2001) Early Medieval sculpture in the West Highlands and Islands, RCAHMS/SocAntScot Monograph series 1 Edinburgh
Page(s): 85-6 Held at RCAHMS A.1.6.SCU

Gordon, S (1935) Highways and Byways in the Western Highlands,
Page(s): 168-70

Macdonald, C (1997) Moidart: among the Clanranalds Revision
Page(s): 123

Miers, M (2008) The Western Seaboard: an illustrated architectural guide, Edinburgh

Muir, T S (1885) Ecclesiological notes on some of the islands of Scotland, Edinburgh
Page(s): 77 Held at RCAHMS F.5.31.MUI

PSAS (1896a) 'Donations to and purchases for the Museum and Library, with exhibits', Proc Soc Antiq Scot, vol.30
Page(s): 39

Watson, W J (1926) The history of the Celtic place-names of Scotland: being the Rhind lectures on archaeology (expanded) delivered in 1916, Edinburgh
Page(s): 285-6 Held at RCAHMS C.4.2.WAT

Showing 12 from 12 ...show less