Mortlach Parish Church

Description

Mortlach Parish Church, Dufftown - Mortlach, Grampian - Places of Worship in Scotland | SCHR

Mortlach Church is known for being one of the oldest sites of continuous Christian worship in Scotland. Molvag, a contemporary of St Columba, came from Bangor and established a church or chapel here in around 566. The present church owes its form and appearance to centuries of phases of building work, stretching from the 13th century (or possibly earlier) to the late 19th century, when the existing church was extensively re-worked.

The church is located just to the south of Dufftown in the small hamlet of Kirktown of Mortlach, now dominated by a large distillery complex. It stands alongside a crossroads and is close to the Dullan Water river - thus occupying a typical early Christian site. There is a large graveyard on three sides of the church and an even larger 19th century cemetery alongside to the east, on the other side of the river (and accessed from the church by a small bridge). 

. Scottish Church Heritage Research Ltd (SCHR) maintains a database of over 10000 places of worship in Scotland.