Arts and crafts in Argyll and Bute

Argyll and Bute is in Scotland. It has a population of around 88,000 and covers approximately 690,000 hectares. Here is a list of nearby or neighbouring counties: Highland, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire, Perth and Kinross, Stirling, West Dunbartonshire.

Argyll and Bute (called Earra-Ghaidheal agus Bod in Scottish Gaelic) is home to a variety of wildlife and has an impressive landscape of rugged coastline, sandy beaches, forests, mountains and islands with picturesque villages. The main council offices are located in the town of Lochgilphead and housed within 19th century Kilmory Castle, which is a listed building. Easdale Island Folk Museum has exhibits reflecting the history of the island and its people, along with crafts handmade by locals including furniture and knitwear. Mount Stuart is a 19th century country house on the Isle of Bute, built in Victorian Gothic style on the site of an earlier house and set among beautiful parkland and gardens. Inside the rooms are finely furnished and decorated, with stained glass windows, marble staircase, pillars, arches and a collection including fine art, tapestries and costumes.

Auchindrain Highland Farm Township is the only remaining example of a farming community, of which until a couple of centuries ago there were thousands across Scotland, until they were replaced by crofts and estates. With restored buildings set among the dramatic scenery, the museum provides visitors with a sense of how people would have lived and worked in such communities. Inveraray Castle is home to the Duke of Argyll and has the look of a romantic fairytale castle, with its turrets, beautiful gardens and highland setting, as seen by millions of viewers around the world when it appeared in the television show Downton Abbey. The interiors have hand-painted ceilings, ornate antique furniture from France, Scotland and England, tapestries and collections of fine art, ceramics, silver and armour. Other attractions in Argyll and Bute include Kilmartin House Museum, Kingarth Standing Stones, Bute Museum, the ruins of Skipness Castle, Glencoe, Arduaine Garden, the Mull of Kintyre and Loch Lomond National Nature Reserve.