
Taken 11th August 2004: After the heavy rain we’d been having a little temporary lake had appeared around the foot of the stone.
Taken 11th August 2004: After the heavy rain we’d been having a little temporary lake had appeared around the foot of the stone.
Taken 11th August 2005: Looking approximately north east, with the A849 in the distance.
Looking NNE
Looking due south
Visited 2.8.13
The rain continued to pour. This was easily the wettest day of our holiday. Still, you can’t let a bit of moisture stop you from visiting a site can you?
The wind was so strong it blew me back into the car as I got out – much to everyone’s amusment! The bank up from the road was very slippery and the wooden stile was on its last legs. In fact it gave way under me as I crossed over – again much amusement from the car!
The stone is a good one. It is about 2.5m tall and stood in what was now more of a swamp than a field. I didn’t stay long before hurrying back to the sanctuary of the car.
Well worth a look when you are on your way to Iona along the A849.
Visited 11th August 2004: Taoslin is accessible over a small stile. It’s a hefty lump of rock, with large packing stones around the base of it. It’s a lot smaller than Tiraghoil and far less elegant than Fionnphort. On my visit the hollow around the base of the stone was full of water, forming quite an aesthetically pleasing pond. The reflection of the stone in the water was great. I wonder whether Taoslin is the real deal though? Those packing stones can’t be original. They’re far too large, and inexpertly placed.
Canmore debates whether this stone is prehistoric, or whether it is merely a way-marker for pilgrims en route to Iona. It certainly looks genuine to me!
Around 2m in height, aligned NNW-SSE, with a slightly sloping top, it has some field clearance boulders at the base and appears to be yet another popular sheep rubbing post.