The Paps of Jura ( gd, Sgurr na Cìche) are three

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...

s on the western side of the island of Jura, in the

Inner Hebrides The Inner Hebrides (; Scottish Gaelic: ''Na h-Eileanan a-staigh'', "the inner isles") is an archipelago off the west coast of mainland Scotland, to the south east of the Outer Hebrides. Together these two island chains form the Hebrides, whic ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Their highest point is . They are steep-sided

quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tect ...

hills with distinctive conical shapes resembling breasts. The word pap is an ancient word of

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

origin for the breast. The Paps are conspicuous hills that dominate the island landscape as well as the landscape of the surrounding area. They can be seen from the

Mull of Kintyre The Mull of Kintyre is the southwesternmost tip of the Kintyre Peninsula (formerly ''Cantyre'') in southwest Scotland. From here, the Antrim coast of Northern Ireland is visible on a calm and clear day, and a historic lighthouse, the second ...

and, on a clear day,

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye (; gd, An t-Eilean Sgitheanach or ; sco, Isle o Skye), is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated b ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

, and

Malin Head Malin Head ( ga, Cionn Mhálanna) is the most northerly point of mainland Ireland, located in the townland of Ardmalin on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal. The head's northernmost point is called Dunalderagh at latitude 55.38ºN. It is ...

. One of the simplest routes of ascent starts from

Craighouse Craighouse ( gd, Taigh na Creige) is the main settlement and capital of the Scottish Inner Hebridean island of Jura, in Argyll and Bute. In 1971 it had a population of 113. The village is situated on the sheltered east coast of the island at t ...

. The route of the annual

Isle of Jura Fell Race The Isle of Jura Fell Race is an annual fell race held in May, starting and finishing at Craighouse on the Scottish island of Jura. The course loops west and north over several hills including the Paps of Jura. After the last climb to Corra Bheinn ...

includes all three Paps and four other hills. When viewed from Kintraw Argyll the midwinter sun briefly shines between two of the paps just before setting. These hills were the subject of

William McTaggart William McTaggart (25 October 1835 – 2 April 1910) was a Scottish landscape and marine painter who was influenced by Impressionism. Life and work The son of a crofter, William McTaggart was born in the small village of Aros, near Camp ...

's 1902 painting ''The Paps of Jura'', now displayed in the

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...

Mountains

Beinn an Òir Beinn an Òir (Gaelic for "mountain of gold") is the highest peak of the Paps of Jura on the island of Jura, Scotland. It is the highest peak on the island, standing at 785 metres, and is thereby a Corbett. Beinn an Òir is frequently cli ...

(Gaelic: ''mountain of gold'') is the highest hill on Jura, standing at , and is therefore a

Corbett Corbett may refer to: * List of Corbetts (mountains), 222 mountains in Scotland between , with prominence over * Corbett, Oregon, a community in the United States * Corbett Award, US award for athletics administrators * Corbett (surname), people w ...

. *

Beinn Shiantaidh Beinn Shiantaidh () is the second highest peak of the Paps of Jura on the island of Jura, Scotland. It stands at 757 metres above sea level, and with over 300 metres of relative height is therefore a Graham Graham and Graeme may ref ...

(Gaelic: ''holy mountain'') stands at high. *

Beinn a' Chaolais Beinn a' Chaolais (Scottish Gaelic language, Gaelic: ''mountain of the sound or strait'') is the lowest peak of the Paps of Jura on the island of Jura, Scotland, Jura, Scotland. It stands at 733 metres above sea level, and with over 300&nb ...

(Gaelic: ''mountain of the

kyle Kyle or Kyles may refer to: Places Canada * Kyle, Saskatchewan, Canada Ireland * Kyle, County Laois * Kyle, County Wexford Scotland * Kyle, Ayrshire, area of Scotland which stretched across parts of modern-day East Ayrshire and South Ayrshir ...

'') is the lowest of the Paps, reaching .Haswell-Smith, Hamish (2004). ''The Scottish Islands''. Edinburgh: Canongate.

References

External links

Stuart McHardy, ''The Goddess in the Landscape of Scotland''
{{Jura Mountains and hills of the Scottish islands Mountains and hills of Argyll and Bute Jura, Scotland Mountain ranges of Scotland

Mountains

See also

References

External links