Built in honour of George Gordon, the 5th Duke of Gordon,[1] the monument takes the form of a Tuscan column, 80 feet (24 m) high, and 6 feet 9 inches (2.06 m) wide at the base.

The column is hollow, with a spiral staircase leading up the shaft which gives access to the top.

It was erected in 1839, and a statue of Gordon, sculpted by Thomas Goodwillie, was installed on the top in 1855.

It was built at a cost of £1,240 by masons Brander and Shand,[4] and paid for from funds established by a bequest and contributed to by the Morayshire Farmers Club.

[3] Originally it was topped with a lantern, but that did not meet with critical approval[5] and it was replaced by Goodwillie's statue, depicting Gordon wearing the robes of office associated with his role as Chancellor of Marischall College, Aberdeen, in 1855.