Historic Scotland: Google Street View launched a new collection of historic Scottish sites

EDINBURGH, Scotland, 2014-12-15 — /Travel PR News/ — Some of Scotland’s most iconic heritage sites are now available to view virtually.

Google Street View has launched a new collection of historic Scottish sites, allowing people to now explore a number of the nation’s picturesque castles, forts and abbeys from their phone, tablet or computer.

Partnering with Historic Scotland, the project captured sixteen landmarks in total, covering the length and breadth of Scotland.

Sites featured range from Stirling Castle, with its magnificent renaissance palace, to Dunfermline Abbey and Palace, the final resting place of many Scots Kings and Queens. Other participating sites include Urquhart Castleon the banks of Loch Ness and Caerlaverock Castle in Dumfries and Galloway.

With 360-degree interactive imagery, people all over the world can see and explore the iconic places before they go, including some remote and hard-to-reach places they may never have discovered on their own.

Commenting on the launch, Stephen Duncan, Director of Commercial and Tourism at Historic Scotland, said:

“We are pleased to have partnered with Google Street View to work on this new collection which showcases online a number of our properties from across Scotland.

“This technology will allow visitors, no matter where they are in the world, to get a taste of several of our properties in a new way. We hope that it will encourage them to visit and further their discovery of these magnificent historic sites and properties in person.”

The sites were captured in July this year using the Google Street View Trekker, in partnership with Historic Scotland. The Trekker – a four-foot, 40lbs backpack, fitted with a 15-angle lens camera, taking 360 degree pictures every 2.5 seconds – is designed to capture imagery in locations that the Street View car can’t typically reach.

Notes:

• About Street View: www.google.co.uk/maps/about/behind-the-scenes/streetview/treks
• The new sites join other iconic Scottish sites already live on Street View like Edinburgh Castle
• Images here
  • The full list of sites in this collection are:
  • Dunfermline Abbey and Palace
  • Dumbarton Castle
  • Tantallon Castle
  • Linlithgow Palace
  • Lochleven Castle
  • Arbroath Abbey
  • Stirling Castle
  • Fort George
  • Urquhart Castle
  • Arthur’s Seat
  • Blackness Castle
  • Dirleton Castle
  • Craigmillar Castle
  • Glasgow Cathedral
  • Dunstaffnage Castle and Chapel

Notes for editors:

• Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government charged with safeguarding the nation’s historic environment. The agency is fully accountable to Scottish Ministers and through them to the Scottish Parliament.

• Register for media release email alerts from www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/news. If you wish to unsubscribe at any time, please email hs.website@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

• Scotland welcomes the world in the Year of Homecoming 2014 providing a year-long programme of events alongside the Ryder Cup and Commonwealth Games. The Year of Homecoming Scotland will run until 31 December 2014 throughout the length and breadth of the country. Visitors from around the world are invited to join in a celebration of the nation’s food and drink, active pursuits, cultural heritage, nature and ancestral heritage. Homecoming Scotland 2014 is a Scottish Government initiative being led by EventScotland and VisitScotland, supported by numerous partners. To find out more visitwww.homecomingscotland.com. For more on Historic Scotland’s Homecoming activities visitwww.historic-scotland.gov.uk/homecoming or tweet us using #hshomecoming.

Follow Historic Scotland:

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Homecoming:	www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/homecoming (#hshomecoming)
Blogs:	Historic Scotland Chain Mail www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/blog Stirling Castle: www.stirlingcastle.gov.uk/blog Edinburgh Castle: www.edinburghcastle.gov.uk/blog Climate Change: www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/climatechangeblog

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