Peel of Lumphanan
The Peel of Lumphanan is a defensive structure dating back to the early 1200s. It comprises a central mound measuring some 37m by 45m standing nearly 10m above an encircling moat or ditch.
The moat is 15m wide, and is itself enclosed by an earth bank, some 4m high. The overall structure seems surprisingly complete and undisturbed, despite evidence of later use.
Macbeth was killed at the Battle of Lumphanan on 15 August 1057 and his story has long been linked with the Peel of Lumphanan.
But while Macbeth's stone, marking the spot where his head was severed, lies just 300m south west of the Peel, and while a fortified motte very probably existed here at the time of his death, the Peel of Lumphanan itself dates back only to the years after 1230, when the de Lundin family were granted extensive landholdings in the area.