Google Street View launched for sixteen historic Scottish sites

Google Street View has launched a new collection of historic sites, allowing people to 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.

The sixteen historic sites range from Stirling Castle, with its magnificent renaissance palace, to Dunfermline Abbey and Palace, the final resting place of many Scottish Kings and Queens. Other participating sites include Urquhart Castle on 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 sites before they go, including some remote and hard-to-reach places they may never have discovered on their own.

Sites such as Arthur's Seat, which require a long uphill trek are out of reach for many people, but can now be enjoyed virtually via the new technology.
 
SEEING SCOTLAND FROM AROUND THE WORLD

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.'

CAPTURING THE HISTORIC SITES

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.
 



LIST OF SITES

The full list of sites in the collection is:

Dumbarton Castle (pictured above)
Tantallon Castle
Linlithgow Palace
Caerlaverock Castle
Loch Leven Castle
Arbroath Abbey
Stirling Castle
Fort George
Urquhart Castle
Arthur's Seat (pictured above right)
Blackness Castle
Dirleton Castle (pictured top)
Craigmillar Castle
Glasgow Cathedral
Dunstaffnage Castle and Chapel

For more information on Google Street View, visit the website.

Images copyright Historic Scotland/Google Street View.