Clan Donnachaidh and the Macbeth exhibition

The Clan Donnachaidh Society was pleased to loan the Clach na Brataich for a major exhibition on Macbeth hosted by Perth Museum from 25 April to 31 August 2025.

The Exhibition explored Shakespeare's iconic play, alongside the story of the real King Macbeth who reigned in Scotland 900 years ago.  The Chief, who is a direct descendant of King Duncan I, Macbeth's predecessor as King of Alba, attended the preview with hs wife Bridget.

The Clach na Brataich, the Stone of the Standard, the clan’s most important talisman, is an orb of rock crystal the size of a golf ball. The earliest account of its  origin states that it was found in the 1330s by the Chief’s ancestor, Duncan of Atholl, considered the first chief of the clan, when his standard was pulled out of the ground
in Glen Errochty during a campaign against the MacDougalls of Lorne.

Duncan of Atholl was descended from a junior branch of the Celtic Earls of Atholl, who were descendants of a younger son of King Duncan.

In Shakespeare’s play the elderly King Duncan is killed in his sleep by Macbeth and his wife. The historical King Duncan appears to have been a fairly young man who was killed in battle against Macbeth in 1040.

The Clach na Brataich was safely returned following a very successful exhibition and is on display at the Clan Donnachaidh Museum at Bruar in Perthshire.