ANCIENT ruins said to be stalked by the ghost of a woman who could foresee the future have gone on sale.
The tumbledown remains of the Old Village of Lawers, on the shore of Loch Tay, Perthshire, dates from the 1600s and has been put on the market with a price-tag of £100,00.
The new owner would be unable to build on the spooky site, which is designated as a scheduled ancient monument, but would become the "custodian" of an area said to be rich in history.
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However, they may also have to contend with the spirit of Lady Lawers, last occupant of the House of Lawers, who was said to have been a soothsayer who predicted disasters on the Loch and who locals claim haunts the ruins to this day.
Jon Lambert, of selling agent John Clegg & Co, said: “An opportunity such as this to acquire part of Scotland’s historical heritage in what many believe to be the most beautiful part of the country arises very rarely.
"The word ‘unique’ is overused but there can be very few times when it is so appropriate as with this chance to be the owner and custodian of an area so rich in history, romance and tradition.”
The three-acre site comprises ruins at each end with an ‘in-field’ in between, on which the villagers farmed in the past.
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Lady Lawers is remembered for various prophecies, some relating to the church of Lawers and the local community, while others refer to social and economic changes.
She referred to ‘fire-coaches’ crossing the Drumochter Pass, she foreshadowed the coming of the railway and steam trains.
She is supposed to have planted an ash tree at the north end of Lawers Kirk and said that when it grew to the height of the little spire the church would fall.
In fact the church was so much damaged in a thunderstorm in which the ash tree perished that it was never used again.
Lady Lawers also prophesied that ‘a ship driven by smoke' would sink in Loch Tay with great loss of life she long before the construction of steam ships, one of which did sink in the loch.
The 1841 Census suggests that there may have been 17 people living by the loch in the old village. By 1891 there were only seven people, all of whom lived in the pier master’s house.
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The new owners would need to work with Historic Environment Scotland to safeguarding the ruins, while area is also subject to a conservation agreement with the National Trust of Scotland, who would need to approve any work undertaken on site.
Due to the very special nature of the site, the planning authority – Perth and Kinross Council – is unlikely to support an application for the building of a conventional property.
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