Press release -
Six Stunning Sites Unearthed in Search for Scotland’s Hidden Gems
Dig It! 2017, the year-long celebration of archaeology, has been coordinating the Scotland-wide search. Over 12,000 votes have been cast over the last two months and with the polls now closed, the winners have been revealed:
- Govan Stones, Glasgow
- Ardrossan Castle, North Ayrshire
- The Howff, Dundee
- James Watt Cottage, Bo’ness (Falkirk)
- Campbeltown Picture House, Argyll & Bute
- Lincluden Collegiate Church, Dumfries & Galloway
With over 2,000 votes, the Govan Stones was the most popular site. The collection consists of 31 medieval stones carved in the Viking era, including carved crosses and five Viking hogback stones. Ardrossan Castle, a medieval ruin which once played host to some of Scotland’s most powerful people including William Wallace, came in second place.
The Howff, a 453-year-old graveyard, landed in third place with over 1,000 votes. Fourth place was claimed by James Watt Cottage - the former workshop of the inventor James Watt, whose steam engine played a key role in the Industrial Revolution.
Campbeltown Picture House, one of the earliest surviving purpose-built cinemas in the UK, came in fifth place with over 800 votes. The final spot was claimed by Lincluden Collegiate Church, where visitors can still find angels and cherubs carved in the stone.
As part of the 2017 Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology, Scotland’s six World Heritage Sites were celebrated with six events in April. The organisers then set out to find six “lesser-known” sites to bring them into the spotlight as well.
The ‘Scotland in Six – Hidden Gems’ campaign began in June after 28 sites were nominated by local groups and organisations. Voting took place on Facebook, where one “like” equalled one vote.
The six winning Hidden Gems sites are now preparing to mark their victory with six events during Scottish Archaeology Month in September.
Dr Jeff Sanders, Dig It! 2017 Project Manager, said: “We’ve been thrilled by the reaction to the Hidden Gems campaign. The people who nominated the sites have put an enormous amount of time and effort into the promotion and it’s been great to see members of the public respond with equal enthusiasm - whether they’re sharing childhood memories or discovering a site for the first time.”
Marie Christie, Head of Development, VisitScotland Events Directorate, said: "From World Heritage Sites to ancient monuments, listed buildings to historic battlefields, cultural traditions to our myths, stories and legends, the Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology is the time to explore Scotland's fascinating past.
Following the success of Scotland in Six, celebrating World Heritage Day, it is great to see the overwhelming response from voters who are proud to support some of Scotland’s ‘lesser known’ sites. These hidden gems highlight our rich and diverse history and we are looking forward to the events planned for Scottish Archaeology Month in September."
To learn more about the sites, visit DigIt2017.com
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Notes to Editors
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- VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
- The organisation’s core objective is to contribute to the Tourism 2020 Strategy ambition of growing tourism revenues by £1 billion by 2020.
- This will be supported by seven overarching strategies:
- Marketing: we will market Scotland and its outstanding assets to visitors from all parts of the world, including the promotion of Scotland to people living in Scotland to visit different parts of the country
- Events: we will support the national events strategy and its delivery, and sustain, develop and promote Scotland’s international profile as one of the world’s foremost events destinations
- Internationalisation and International Engagement: we will utilise all our platforms to enable Scottish-based tourism businesses to better understand international opportunities and market to a global audience and we will work within One Scotland Partnerships to optimise the potential of Scotland’s Diaspora and our strategic partners at regional, European and global levels
- Customer Experience: we will provide information and inspiration to visitors both locally and globally via their preferred medium of choice
- Quality and Sustainability: we will provide support and advice to businesses, with the goal of improving the quality and sustainability of the tourism sector in Scotland. We will provide quality assurance to visitors through our Quality Schemes
- Inclusive Tourism: we will strive to make tourism in Scotland inclusive and available to all
- Working in Partnership: we will listen to and work with the industry, partners and communities to shape our offering and support
- To ensure everyone can safely enjoy Scotland’s amazing countryside and landscapes, VisitScotland encourages all visitors to fully respect their surroundings by behaving in a responsible and appropriate way.
- VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
- The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and VisitScotland Information Centres across Scotland.
- Spending by tourists in Scotland generates around £12 billion of economic activity in the wider Scottish supply chain and contributes around £6 billion to Scottish GDP (in basic prices). This represents about 5% of total Scottish GDP
- The Scottish Government is the Managing Authority for the European Structural Funds 2014-20 Programme. For further information visit www.gov.scot or follow @scotgovESIF
- For VisitScotland’s press releases go to http://www.visitscotland.org/media_centre.aspx, tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to http://www.visitscotland.org/
- Where possible, a Gaelic speaker will be made available for broadcast interviews on request (Far an tèid iarraidh, agus far am bheil sin nar comas, bruidhinnidh neach le Gàidhlig aig agallamh) 2017 Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology
- 2017 is the year to delve into the past and discover Scotland’s fascinating stories through a wide-ranging variety of new and existing activity to drive the nation’s tourism and events sector, boosting tourism across Scotland.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology begins on 1 January 2017 and will end on 31 December 2017. It will build on the momentum generated by previous themed years in Scotland including the 2015 Year of Food and Drink, Homecoming Scotland 2014, the Year of Creative and the Year of Natural.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology is a Scottish Government initiative being led by VisitScotland, and supported by a variety of partners including Creative Scotland, Scottish Tourism Alliance, Scottish Enterprise, The National Trust for Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Built Environment Forum Scotland, Heritage Lottery Fund, Museums Galleries Scotland and Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology is supported by £570,000 of Scottish Government funding.
- The Year of History, Heritage and Archaeology events fund is managed by EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate.
- For more information visit visitscotland.com/HHA2017 or join the conversation at #HHA2017
