The ancient seat of the Clan MacDougall at Dunollie Castle, Museum and Grounds in Oban has been closed to the public after significant storm damage.
Storm Kathleen, which blew through Oban at the weekend, has “ripped” off parts of the roof of the 1745 house.
With wind speeds of up to 40-60mph, Storm Kathleen battered the west Highlands on Saturday night.
As well as lights flickering power in parts of the town, a small number of homes are still without internet after a transformer was struck by lightning.
The winds were at their highest on Saturday night into Sunday morning.
The 1745 house, which lies adjacent to the 13th-century Dunollie Castle, was damaged the extent of which was discovered on Monday morning.
A spokesperson for Dunollie Museum said they hoped the closure would only last a few days – as without income from visitors they would be in an “extremely precarious and difficult position”.
1745 house at Dunollie Castle was damaged in Storm Kathleen
In a statement on the charity’s social media pages, a spokeswoman said: “We are sorry to say that damage has been sustained to our historic 1745 House Museum during Storm Kathleen.
“The tin flashing at the very top of the roof was ripped off by the wind.
“We have done the best we could to protect the contents of the museum, but until we know the extent of the structural damage, we will be unable to open Dunollie Museum, Castle and Grounds to the public.”
The museum had only recently reopened after its annual winter closure.
The spokeswoman continued: “Anyone who has visited us knows how passionate our staff, volunteers and trustees are about opening the site to the public, and we are extremely sorry not be open for our local community, and visitors to the area.
“We enjoy the visitor season so much here at Dunollie and it feels like a huge shame to be shut again so soon after opening.”
The spokeswoman told The Press and Journal that the charity had been offered support from the community already.
She said: “People had been buying tickets for the castle, even though we are temporarily closed. It is gratefully received.”
The 1745 house was reopened to the public in 2016 after major repair and renovation.
The spokesperson continued: “We hope that the temporary closure will only last a few days, not least because income from our visitor site is the main source of funds for our small charity.
“We are in an extremely precarious and difficult position not being able to open so early in the season.”
They continued: “In the meantime, your continued support means a great deal to us. If anyone did feel able to make a contribution to our ongoing operating costs whilst we are closed, it would be extremely appreciated.”
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