United Nations' Education, Science, & Cultural Organization registered places, Scotland
Edinburgh Castle, with the New Town beyond, is at the heart of the Edinburgh World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites in Scotland are locations that have been included in the UNESCOWorld Heritage Programme list of sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humankind. Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for 'cultural' sites as part of their wider responsibility towards the historic environment. The Environment Directorate is responsible for natural sites.[1]
There are currently six sites in Scotland, with a further two undergoing a process of formal evaluation. Informal discussion of a site for "Þings" (Norse parliaments) has taken place.
St. Kilda is a small, out-lying archipelago of Hebridean islands which was inscribed as a "natural" site in 1986.[2] In 2004, the site was extended to include a large amount of the surrounding marine features as well as the islands themselves.[3][4] In July 2005 it became one of the few World Heritage Sites to hold joint status for its natural and cultural qualities.[5] The islands were bequeathed to the National Trust for Scotland in 1957. They are also a Biosphere Reserve and a National Scenic Area.
New Lanark was inscribed in 2001. It is a restored 18th century industrial cotton mill village in South Lanarkshire constructed by Robert Owen as an experiment in utopian socialism. Restoration was organised by the New Lanark Conservation Trust, which was formed in 1974.
The Antonine Wall was inscribed in July 2008.[6] It is an extension to a wider series of sites in Austria, Germany and Slovakia entitled "Frontiers of the Roman Empire".[6] The Wall is the remains of a defensive line made of turf c. 20 feet high, with nineteen forts. It was constructed after 139 AD and extended for 37 miles between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. The wall was overrun and abandoned soon after 160 AD, then occupied again for a brief period after 197 AD.
The Forth Bridge was inscribed as a World Heritage Site on 5 July 2015. Its three iconic diamond-shaped towers form a cantilever bridge completed in 1890 carrying a dual-track railway line 46 metres (151ft) above the waters of the Firth of Forth14 kilometres (8.7mi) north-west of Edinburgh over a distance of 2,517 metres (8,258ft). Network Rail, the current owners of the bridge, made their initial opposition to a nomination clear, being concerned this could impose "additional burdens" on their ability to operate it.[7] Nonetheless, the bridge was nominated for inclusion in early 2014.[8] The listing recognised it as "an extraordinary and impressive milestone in bridge design and construction during the period when railways came to dominate long-distance land travel."[9]
Commenting on World Heritage Day in 2008, Linda Fabiani the then Scottish Minister for Europe, External Affairs and Culture stated: "We can... take the opportunity to reflect upon the contribution of our own World Heritage Sites and their place in the global story of humanity. We can celebrate, with justified pride, Scotland's contribution".[10]
A year later the then Culture Minister Mike Russell MSP announced at Mount Rushmore in the United States that Historic Scotland had launched a project called the Scottish Ten. This was to use laser scanners to create digital models of Scotland's five World Heritage Sites and for another five sites elsewhere, including the Mount Rushmore National Memorial. The aim is to use the digital imagery to aid in the "conservation, maintenance and management of these globally important sites". The amount of data stored will be significant. Similar work recently done on Rosslyn Chapel near Edinburgh resulted in the storage of terabytes of data, the scans being made up of 8 billion individual points. This information will be held on special secure servers[11] and a budget of £1.5 million has been allocated to the project.[12]
Also in 2009, the Clydesdale Bank commemorated Scotland's sites on the reverses of a new series of banknotes: an image based on a historical photograph of St Kilda residents appeared on the £5 notes; of the Old and New Towns of Edinburgh on the £10 notes; of New Lanark on the £20 notes; of the Antonine Wall on the £50 notes; and of Neolithic Orkney on the £100 notes.[13][14]
The United Kingdom tentative list comprises sites which may be nominated for inscription over the next 5–10 years. Including the now-inscribed Antonine Wall, four Scottish sites were on the 2006 list.[15] Several sites were then added in 2010, of which only three were selected for a short list created in 2011.[16] The two short-listed candidates remaining after designation of the Forth Bridge in 2015 are:
The Flow Country of Caithness and Sutherland in the north of Scotland is one of the largest and most intact areas of blanket bog in the world, supporting a distinctive wildlife community. Its 4,000 square kilometres support numerous rare plants and insects and important populations of golden plover, dunlin, greenshank, and black-throated divers. This site is a natural candidate.
Scottish sites currently on the Tentative List for World Heritage status
The 2010 applications to join the Tentative List that were not carried forward were: Arbroath Abbey; Buildings of Charles Rennie Mackintosh in Glasgow; and St Andrews, Medieval Burgh and Links.[17][18][19] (Arbroath Abbey's application was made on the basis of its link with the 14th century Declaration of Arbroath.[20] The signing of the declaration is celebrated in the Abbey each year on 6 April, an event that now coincides with Tartan Day in the US.[21])
In 2010 Secretary of State for ScotlandMichael Moore said: "All these sites have something special that draws people to them and they are recognisable across the world. I am delighted that so many of Scotland’s attractions have stepped forward and answered the UK government’s call for world heritage status.[22]
The Minister for Culture and External Affairs, Fiona HyslopMSP (who took on the post from Fabiani in 2009)[23] said: "Many groups, individuals and local authorities across Scotland put work into nominating places that mean a lot to them and I would like to thank them for the enthusiasm they have shown for our historic environment".[24]
Mike Cantlay, the chairman of VisitScotland said: "We sell Scotland to the world, bringing millions of visitors and billions of pounds to the economy and World Heritage status certainly helps make Scotland an even more attractive option for visitors in search of interesting things to see and do".[24] The Heart of Neolithic Orkney site has certainly been a marketing success, with annual tourist numbers visiting Skara Brae alone now exceed 55,000 per annum.[25] However some applications have drawn criticism based on the potential costs involved.[7] The Cairngorm Mountains, a massif at the heart of the Cairngorms National Park was on the 2006 Tentative List,[15] but is no longer under active consideration.[Note 1]
Other explorations
Law Ting Holm
In April 2010 delegates of the THING project (which is supported by the EU's Northern Periphery Programme) explored the possibility of a transnational World Heritage nomination, based on an expansion of Iceland's existing World Heritage Site Thingvellir. Shetland Amenity Trust place names officer, Eileen Brooke Freeman, said: "We can identify many of the assembly sites throughout areas of Scandinavian influence by their common ting, thing, ding and fing place names". Examples quoted include Gulating (Norway), Tinganes (Faroe Islands), Tingwall in both Shetland and in Orkney, Dingwall (Highland) and Tynwald (Isle of Man).[27] It has also emerged that Thynghowe in Sherwood Forest, England is a contender to be part of such an initiative.[28]
In May 2010, just a few weeks before the announcement of The Crucible of Iron Age Shetland's application, the Shetland Islands Council sponsored "Move.Shetland" newsletter publicised the Thing initiative, and listed various Shetland "Thing" districts such as Aithsting, Sandsting, Nesting, Lunnasting and Delting and the islet of Law Ting Holm, the former location of the national þing, or Norse parliament of Shetland.[29][30]
Public sector involvement and support
According to Historic Scotland "Scottish Ministers identify and put forward sites to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport for nomination".[31] In August 2010 Hyslop stated that guidance on the revised application process would become available from Historic Scotland in due course.[32] They have stated that "the participation of a wide variety of stakeholders, including site managers, local and regional governments, local communities, NGOs and other interested parties and partners" is encouraged.[33]
Assistance to local authorities is available from LAWHF - Local Authorities Working Together for World Heritage. Established in 1996, this organisation represents communities across the UK "which have existing or potential World Heritage Sites within their areas."[34] Historic Scotland and LAWHF have liaison meetings from time to time.[35]
Edinburgh World Heritage is a charity funded in 1999 through donations, from the City of Edinburgh Council and Historic Scotland, with the role of conserving, enhancing and promoting the city's World Heritage Site.[36] In 2010 it was announced that Edinburgh City Council are considering a 2% "transient guest tax" on visitors staying in larger hotels. If implemented, the tax could raise £3 million or more, which would be used for marketing the city and on maintenance work designed to retain the existing World Heritage Site status.[37]
After the 2008 inscription, the "Access to the Antonine Wall" project was created by the Central Scotland Forest Trust, North Lanarkshire Council and Falkirk Council. It has provided better information about the best routes to visit the Wall and provides information about other local facilities.[38]
↑ "Sites that were on the previous tentative list, including the Forth Rail Bridge, the Cairngorms and the Flow Country, will not automatically be included on the new one and will have to apply alongside other sites."[26]
In archaeology, a broch is an Iron Age drystone hollow-walled structure found in Scotland. Brochs belong to the classification "complex Atlantic roundhouse" devised by Scottish archaeologists in the 1980s.
Skara Brae is a stone-built Neolithic settlement, located on the Bay of Skaill on the west coast of Mainland, the largest island in the Orkney archipelago of Scotland. It consisted of ten clustered houses, made of flagstones, in earthen dams that provided support for the walls; the houses included stone hearths, beds, and cupboards. A primitive sewer system, with "toilets" and drains in each house, included water used to flush waste into a drain and out to the ocean.
Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom.
New Lanark is a village on the River Clyde, approximately 1.4 miles from Lanark, in Lanarkshire, and some 25 miles (40 km) southeast of Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded in 1785 and opened in 1786 by David Dale, who built cotton mills and housing for the mill workers. Dale built the mills there in a brief partnership with the English inventor and entrepreneur Richard Arkwright to take advantage of the water power provided by the only waterfalls on the River Clyde. Under the ownership of a partnership that included Dale's son-in-law, Robert Owen, a Welsh utopian socialist and philanthropist, New Lanark became a successful business and an early example of a planned settlement and so an important milestone in the historical development of urban planning.
The Northern Isles are a chain of islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The climate is cool and temperate and highly influenced by the surrounding seas. There are two main island groups: Shetland and Orkney. There are a total of 36 inhabited islands, with the fertile agricultural islands of Orkney contrasting with the more rugged Shetland islands to the north, where the economy is more dependent on fishing and the oil wealth of the surrounding seas. Both archipelagos have a developing renewable energy industry. They share a common Pictish and Norse history, and were part of the Kingdom of Norway before being absorbed into the Kingdom of Scotland in the 15th century. The islands played a significant naval role during the world wars of the 20th century.
Jarlshof is the best-known prehistoric archaeological site in Shetland, Scotland. It lies in Sumburgh, Mainland, Shetland and has been described as "one of the most remarkable archaeological sites ever excavated in the British Isles". It contains remains dating from 2500 BC up to the 17th century AD.
The fauna of Scotland is generally typical of the northwest European part of the Palearctic realm, although several of the country's larger mammals were hunted to extinction in historic times and human activity has also led to various species of wildlife being introduced. Scotland's diverse temperate environments support 62 species of wild mammals, including a population of wild cats, important numbers of grey and harbour seals and the most northerly colony of bottlenose dolphins in the world.
The Antonine Wall, known to the Romans as Vallum Antonini, was a turf fortification on stone foundations, built by the Romans across what is now the Central Belt of Scotland, between the Firth of Clyde and the Firth of Forth. Built some twenty years after Hadrian's Wall to the south, and intended to supersede it, while it was garrisoned it was the northernmost frontier barrier of the Roman Empire. It spanned approximately 63 kilometres and was about 3 metres high and 5 metres wide. Lidar scans have been carried out to establish the length of the wall and the Roman distance units used. Security was bolstered by a deep ditch on the northern side. It is thought that there was a wooden palisade on top of the turf. The barrier was the second of two "great walls" created by the Romans in Great Britain in the second century AD. Its ruins are less evident than those of the better-known and longer Hadrian's Wall to the south, primarily because the turf and wood wall has largely weathered away, unlike its stone-built southern predecessor.
The Ness of Brodgar is an archaeological site covering 2.5 hectares between the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness in the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site on the main Island of Orkney, Scotland. Excavations at the site began in 2003. The site has provided evidence of decorated stone slabs, a stone wall 6 metres (20 ft) thick with foundations, and a large building described as a Neolithic temple. The earliest structures were built between 3,300 and 3,200 BC, and the site had been closed down and partly dismantled by 2,200 BC. It was the main subject of a 2016 BBC Scotland documentary, Britain’s Ancient Capital: Secrets of Orkney, presented by Neil Oliver, Chris Packham, Shini Somara, Andy Torbet, and Doug Allan. For preservation, the site is closed during the winter months and covered in polyethylene plastic and tyres to protect it from the environment.
The Zenith of Iron Age Shetland is a combination of three sites in Shetland that have applied to be on the Scottish "Tentative List" of possible nominations for the UNESCO World Heritage Programme list of sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humankind. The application was made by the Shetland Amenity Trust in 2010, and in 2011 the site became one of 11 successful UK applications to join the Tentative List, three of them from Scotland.
The Scottish Ten was a five-year project, initiated in 2009, funded by the Scottish Government. It used technology to create accurate digital models of the country's five World Heritage Sites and five other UNESCO World Heritage Sites elsewhere in the world.
Prehistoric Shetland refers to the prehistoric period of the Shetland archipelago of Scotland, when it was first occupied by humans. The period prior to human settlement in Shetland is known as the geology of Scotland. Prehistory in Shetland does not end until the beginning of the Early Medieval Period in Scotland, around AD 600. More than 5,000 archaeological sites have been recorded in the Shetland Islands.
The architecture of Scotland in the prehistoric era includes all human building within the modern borders of Scotland, before the arrival of the Romans in Britain in the first century BCE. Stone Age settlers began to build in wood in what is now Scotland from at least 8,000 years ago. The first permanent houses of stone were constructed around 6,000 years ago, as at Knap of Howar, Orkney and settlements like Skara Brae. There are also large numbers of chambered tombs and cairns from this era, particularly in the west and north. In the south and east there are earthen barrows, often linked to timber monuments of which only remnants remain. Related structures include bank barrows, cursus monuments, mortuary enclosures and timber halls. From the Bronze Age there are fewer new buildings, but there is evidence of crannogs, roundhouses built on artificial islands and of Clava cairns and the first hillforts. From the Iron Age there is evidence of substantial stone Atlantic roundhouses, which include broch towers, smaller duns. There is also evidence of about 1,000 hillforts in Scotland, most located below the Clyde-Forth line.
Prehistoric art in Scotland is visual art created or found within the modern borders of Scotland, before the departure of the Romans from southern and central Britain in the early fifth century CE, which is usually seen as the beginning of the early historic or Medieval era. There is no clear definition of prehistoric art among scholars and objects that may involve creativity often lack a context that would allow them to be understood.
Hoy and West Mainland is a national scenic area (NSA) covering parts of the islands of Hoy and Mainland in the Orkney Islands of Scotland, as well as parts of the surrounding sea. It is one of 40 such areas in Scotland, which are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection by restricting certain forms of development. The Hoy and West Mainland NSA covers 24,407 ha in total, consisting of 16,479 ha of land with a further 7928 ha being marine.
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