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6 Mar 2019

The Box goes up!

Written by Rhiannon Spencer-Jones, Fundraising Manager
A large scaffold-like structure stands in the ground, just in front of the Hill House. Snow lies on the ground and the sky is a deep blue.
The Hill House Box in the snow
Our innovative conservation project to save Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s masterpiece has begun.

We’re excited that work to build the Hill House Box is making great progress. Photographs from the site show the frame of the Box starting to take shape, now that the foundations and impressive crane are in place.

Several trenches for foundations lie in front of a white building. The trenches are fenced off. Pockets of snow lie on the ground.
The foundations for the Box are now in place, waiting for the steel frame to be added

The first section to go up is on the east side of the house, taking care to preserve the trees that are growing close to the building.

A large scaffold-like structure is put up beside the Hill House, with the assistance of a large crane.
The first side of the Hill House Box is put up, with the assistance of a large crane.
A close-up view of the steel frame of the Box, a scaffold-like structure surrounding the Hill House.
The steel frame will be wrapped with a specialist mesh to keep out the rain.

Once the Hill House Box structure is in place, the team will wrap the frame in a specialised mesh, designed to catch the rain that batters the building every year and which has led to the need for this dramatic conservation project. Learn more about the Hill House Box.

We can’t wait to keep you updated on the next stage of the Box’s construction.

The team at the Hill House would like to thank the thousands of people who donated to save this iconic Mackintosh building. Our Box the Hill House Appeal launched in February last year to urgently raise the funds to build the Box. We’ve been astonished and delighted by the response from lovers of Mackintosh, design and heritage across Scotland and all around the world. From everyone at the National Trust for Scotland, thank you.

We look forward to welcoming you to the Hill House Box when it opens later this year, so you can experience this unique conservation project for yourself.

So far, £1.2 million has been raised, and we’re continuing to fundraise to reach the final £300,000 of our target.

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