Duntrune Castle was built in the 13th century by the MacDougall clan along with several other castles and strongholds in the area - i is thought to be the oldest continuously occupied castle in mainland Scotland. It is located on the north side of Loch Crinan with access to the sea. At some point Clan Campbell took ownership of the castle - however 400 years ago the MacDonalds led by Sir Alistar MacDonald (known as the dreaded Colkitto as well as 6 feet 6 inches tall) arrived at Duntrune Castle and defeated their sworn enemy the Campbells. Colkitto left a few defenders including his favorite piper behind and proceed to board his galley to sail away. The Campbells mounted a counterattack and killed all his men except the piper who was forced to play for the amusement of his captors.

Knowing Colkitto would return the Campbells prepared a trap. The piper bravely played a song called the Pipers Warning to His Master which alerted Colkitto it was a trap - he ordered a hard helm about and escaped to open sea. The piper was brought before the commander of the castle, Lady Dunstaffnage, known as the black bitch. She ordered his hands cut off so he could never play again - unfortunately the flow of blood did not stop and he died. In 1792 the MacCallum (Malcolm) Clan took over ownership of the castle and made it their seat which it remains today. Since the piper died many strange phenomenon have been witnessed in the castle, and some even have recorded hearing the pipers music. In 1888 workers doing repairs discovered the grave of the piper himself - with no hands.

The master of the castle Dean Mapleton ordered a Christian burial for the piper outside the castle walls. These medieval slab grave-stones of the Malcolm of Poltalloch family have been placed in the graveyard on display. The carvings are crisp and are fine examples of celtic tracery work. The central heraldic slab has the Malcolm of Poltalloch coat of arms and the two stones flanking it show warriors in armour. If you stand below the castle late at night, it is said you can see the ghostly apparition of a lone piper on the battlements facing the sea. If you listen carefully you may even hear the notes of the Pipers Warning to his Master echoing across the still waters of the Sound of Jura. In fact the current chief of the MacCallum Clan firmly believes the castle is haunted by the ghost of this piper who died violently over 400 years ago. The samples shown here include the known haplogroups of Clans MacCallum, MacDougall and Campbell.