Whithorn Priory and Museum has opened its doors to the public again. The priory, which is famously aligned to St.Ninian and was the destination for pilgrims from across Europe, was built in the 1100s for Premonstratensian monks and was the cathedral church of Galloway, Visitors can still follow the route taken by medieval pilgrims to visit St Ninian’s shrine at the east end of the church.
The museum is home to a number of rare collections including the Latinus Stone – Scotland’s earliest Christian monument. Visitors can also view the remarkable remnants of the early church for a glimpse of the lavish decoration that once adorned the great cathedral.
The site is operated by The Whithorn Trust and is a property in care of Historic Environment Scotland (HES).
Alex Paterson, Chief Executive of HES said: “We are pleased to have even more of our sites reopening up and down the country including Whithorn Priory, providing visitors with the opportunity to enjoy much loved heritage attractions once again.
“With over 5,000 years of history in our care, we’ve adopted a phased approach to reopening, providing as diverse a mix of attractions as possible, as well as reviewing and implementing the individual reopening requirements of each site, in line with Scottish Government guidance. We are now looking forward to welcoming visitors back to even more sites, providing further opportunity to enjoy Scotland’s diverse and globally renowned historic environment.”
All sites will follow the HES minimum operating standards, which were developed to set a benchmark for the safe reopening of historic sites and resumption of operational activities.
To guarantee entry, tickets should be booked online in advance from the HES website and are now on sale. To book and for more information on further HES sites reopening visit: historyawaits.scot
