Pink again: Craigievar Castle reopens

Craigievar’s lofty position near the Cairngorms offers visitors stunning views across Aberdeenshire and Royal Deeside, but extreme weather has been taking its toll on the building fabric over the past decade. Through our meticulous Pink Again project, National Trust for Scotland conservation experts and specialist contractors have revived the ‘Craigievar Pink’ on the harling and provided the most protective conditions for the exquisite plasterwork and collections inside.

Having built a mammoth seven-storey scaffold and neon-pink protective shroud at the start of the project, the team then made discreet changes to the building’s detailing and slate roofs to better cast away rain and snow. Harling repairs were also carried out before contractors applied over 13,000 litres of the special recipe limewash – enough to fill a small swimming pool. After working at height in all weathers for 18 months, our contractors Harper & Allan, who specialise in traditional stonemasonry, removed the final pieces of scaffolding this spring.

This project at Craigievar was funded by members and supporters of the Trust, with donations coming from as far afield as the USA. Grant funding from Historic Environment Scotland, under its Organisational Support Fund and Partnership Fund Grant schemes, also allowed conservation of Craigievar’s barmkin wall, one of the few remaining examples in Scotland of this traditional protective boundary.

As the team eagerly awaited their first visitors for 18 months, James Henderson, the National Trust for Scotland’s Operations Manager for Craigievar, said, ‘Our charity can’t wait to continue telling the story of Craigievar and we’re extremely proud that the National Trust for Scotland’s supporters and the project team have ensured that there are many more chapters to come.’

Iain Hawkins, the Trust’s Regional Director for the North East, explained why the Pink Again project has been an important achievement: ‘Craigievar Castle and the Pink Again project perfectly encapsulate the National Trust for Scotland’s ambitious and wide-ranging activity to protect, care for, share and speak up for Scotland’s precious heritage, in support of our vision of nature, beauty and heritage for everyone. We are grateful to all our members and supporters who make it possible to share Scotland’s remarkable heritage – at Craigievar and across the whole of the country.’