Wallace Monument windows restored

Mar 8 2013

Visitors to Scotland's monument to national hero William Wallace will be able to admire its stained glass work once again thanks to painstaking work to restore the century-old windows.

The colourful windows at Wallace Monument overlooking Stirling were taken out to be cleaned and mended by specialists.

The five-part artwork features both Wallace and Robert the Bruce. It was removed panel by panel in October for expert treatment by contractors Rab MacInnes and Linda Cannon.

Ms Cannon described the project as the trickiest in her 30-year career.

Stirling District Tourism, which manages the monument, said the windows should be reinstalled by the end of next week.

Wallace led a Scottish rebellion against King Edward I and inflicted a famous defeat in the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297.

Each year thousands of people visit the monument, built in the 1860s in honour of the patriot, portrayed by Mel Gibson in the 1995 hit film Braveheart.

Its stained glass windows were not installed until 1886, the work of Edinburgh company James Ballantine & Son which charged £210 for the commission.