PHOTO CELEBRATION OF SCOTTISH HERITAGE

Send us your pictures from Historic Scotland properties

A special online gallery has been launched by Historic Scotland to celebrate our national heritage.  You can see the photos at

http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/index/places/events/homecominggallery.htm

The public are being invited to submit photographs they have taken at any of the 345 castles, abbeys, palaces, stone circles and other properties in the agency’s care.

The initiative is part of Historic Scotland’s contribution to the 2009 Year of Homecoming.

Marketing and media manager, Rebecca Hamilton, said: “One of the most popular ways of enjoying our sites, and creating a lasting memento of a great day out, is by taking pictures.

“Each year we see a fabulous variety of photographs taken by visitors – from family snaps to artistic studies.

“As part of the Year of Homecoming we decided it would be a fun to give people the chance to share their pictures with a wider audience by  including some of them in our online gallery.”

Anyone wishing to submit a picture for possible inclusion is asked to email it to HSmarketing[at]scotland.gsi.gov.uk.

We would ask people not to send hard copies of photographs, or negatives and slides, to avoid the risk of them getting lost.

A small selection of pictures are already on display – these include a mixture of work by visitors, staff and professional photographers.

Notes

● It may not be possible to show all photos which are submitted and Historic Scotland will use its discretion to decide which are exhibited and for how long.

● Visit the Year of Homecoming area of our website at www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/homecoming. Once there you will find:

● Downloadable guides to our Follow in the Family Footsteps heritage trails – these complement free leaflets already available at the sites taking part.

● A guide to the events Historic Scotland has lined up for 2009.

● Routes to Your Roots – see where your family came from in Scotland, and what it was like there in the past.

● Thirty fascinating historical characters – heroes and rogues – who had the 15 family surnames featured in the family trails. Many of the people are featured in the Oxford DNB and there are free links to their fuller accounts.

● Details of how some of the attractions in our care are linked to great innovations and what visitors of the past thought of places like Edinburgh Castle.

● Extracts from the Treaty of Perpetual Peace – which aimed putting a final end to the history of conflict between Scotland and England, and which was commemorated at the recent Party at the Palace 1503 event at Linlithgow Palace.

Following in the Family Footsteps

The 15 heritage trails created by Historic Scotland, the NTS and HHA involve historic sites linked to the following famous Scottish surnames: Bruce, Campbell, Douglas, Forbes, Fraser, Gordon, Graham, Grant, Hamilton, Lindsay, Macdonald, Maxwell, Murray, Scott, Stewart/Stuart.

The Year of Homecoming

● Homecoming Scotland is a Scottish Government initiative managed by EventScotland, the national events agency, in partnership with VisitScotland, the country's national tourism agency.

● Robert Burns is the inspiration for Homecoming Scotland as 2009 is the 250th anniversary of the birth of Scotland’s national poet.

● Historic Scotland is delighted to be supporting the 2009 Year of Homecoming with a series of initiatives including family trails, spectacular events and the creation of a Homecoming Pass for heritage attractions in association with the National Trust for Scotland and the Historic Houses Association.