Dunkeld Cathedral
The Cathedral sits on a site of Christian worship stretching back to the late 6th. century. Construction started on the exterior of the eastern part of the Cathedral in the mid 13th. Century and was finished in the time of Bishop William Sinclair (1309-1337). The tower, started by Bishop Lauder (1452-75), was the last part of the building to be completed, by Bishop Livingston (1475-83).
The lower part of the tower was used as a court house and still faintly visible, high up on the walls, can be seen paintings of the judgement of Solomon and the woman taken in adultery.
The building had only been completed for around 100 years before the Reformation led to serious damage. The roof of the nave was removed which resulted in the ruined portion you see today. The Choir was restored after the Reformation and began to be used as a parish church; a practice that continues today.
Visitors regularly comment on the sense of peace and prayer in the grounds and experienced within the Cathedral. Worshipping here gives a real sense of belonging to a long heritage of faith, and being part of centuries of prayer, a practice which continues to the present day with local Christians regularly worshiping in this ancient place of faith.
Little Dunkeld Kirk
Built in 1798 by John Stewart, just a few years before the Dunkeld Bridge, Little Dunkeld takes its name from its location and not its size. Probably the fourth building on this site, it is a typical 18th century preaching kirk served as the Parish church for the area south of the River Tay until 1974, when the two parishes (Cathedral and Little Dunkeld) were united.
Little Dunkeld Kirk gets its name from the area in which it is situated and not from the size of the building. (It can actually seat more people than the Cathedral.)
The building is a typical Presbyterian design with a large pulpit on the long wall and three sided gallery so it was designed very much as a preaching station.
It has gone through several alterations in its lifetime, the most recent being a few years ago when some pews were removed to open up the area around the pulpit and to the sides giving it a more friendly appearance and allowing for multi purpose use at other times in the week.
The Little Dunkeld Bell
The Parish of Dunkeld is the proud owner of a 9th century Celtic bell, The Little Dunkeld Bell, read more about it here.
Amulree
The existing church is the first to be built on this site, completed in 1752, it replaced the church at Shian, about 3 1/2 miles further up Glen Quaich. It is said that some of the timbers used in the building came from the scaffolding used when Wades Bridge was built shortly before. The building has been altered several times since. The porch and the vestry on the North side have e=been added on and in 1881-82 further improvements were made. In 1958 the West end of the building was remodeled. The Western third was cut off and a separate Session and Sunday school room was created. The gallery above was sealed off and so the space to be heated much reduced.
