Vital conservation work has started on Scotland's own leaning tower, including the installation of equipment to see if it is still moving, and if so when.
The 60ft Glenfinnan Monument at the head of Loch Shiel, which marks the raising of Bonnie Prince Charlie's standard in the 1745 Jacobite Rising, now leans by over 10 inches to the west.
The monument was built in 1815 by Alexander MacDonald of Glenaladale to honour his ancestors and the fallen Jacobites, and has attracted tourist from across the world ever since.
But the 200 year old tower is currently completely covered in scaffolding to enable the £170,000 project to take place.
The structure first showed signs of weakness in 1929, by listing three inches to the east. In 1933, a survey indicated a swing of two inches to the west. In the early 1980s, the Trust reported a further tilt of six inches to the west. Its sandy, peaty soil base was thought to be the root of the problem, and significant programmes of work to secure and monitor were previously undertaken by its custodians the National Trust for Scotland (NTS).
Now funding has come from Historic Environment Scotland, the NTS's Canadian Foundation and individual donors who contributed to the conservation charity’s call for support, to do more work.
The NTS's surveyor Glyn Young said:
“We’re installing a new system to help us monitor movement of the monument more accurately. Laser survey points are being put in place at the top and bottom of the 18 metre structure, and fixed ground survey points are being put in place too with the agreement of our neighbour. This will mean that we can be confident that the information about the position of the tower is completely consistent, which makes it easier to spot patterns, telling us, for example, if the movement is linked to the seasons or to the water table.”
Masonry and Lime Ltd from Elgin will lead on the work, making repairs to masonry on the monument and boundary wall, replacing lime pointing as needed, renewing the roof, installing a more accessible hatch at the top of the monument and a new handrail to help visitors climb the 62 steps. The commemorative plaques will also be cleaned, repaired and re-lettered, and the landscaping repaired."
As concerning as the Glenfinnan tilt may be, it has a wee bit to go to rival its Italian counterpart in Pisa where the top of the tower is displaced 12 ft 10 ins horizontally.
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