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Saving Scotland: Treasures of the National Trust with Dr. Alan Montgomery

Saving Scotland: Treasures of the National Trust with Dr. Alan Montgomery


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Can't make this time? A video recording will be sent to all participants after the seminar.

Founded 90 years ago to care for Scottish places of historical interest and natural beauty, the National Trust for Scotland is an independent organization that has played a key role in preserving the nation’s rich heritage and unspoiled landscape. Today, the Trust owns properties ranging from tiny cottages to lavish stately homes, from the wild countryside to elegantly manicured gardens. 

This interactive seminar will feature some of the greatest treasures now in the care of The National Trust for Scotland and highlight the wide variety and the historical significance of their properties. We will pay a visit to the colorful gardens of Pitmedden, famous for their formal planting and elaborate topiary, as well as Malleny, with its ancient yew trees and world-class collection of roses. We will enjoy a visit to the birthplace of Robert Burns, the son of a farmer who became Scotland’s national poet, as well as the Tenement House, a unique time capsule of early twentieth-century Glasgow life. 

The seminar will also include some of the Trust’s most magnificent properties, such as the fairytale Castle Fraser and the neo-classical splendor of Culzean Castle, the faded grandeur of Newhailes House, and the modern masterpiece that is Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Hill House.

Led by a Scottish historian, this interactive seminar will feature a selection of the properties cared for by the National Trust for Scotland. Designed to inform curiosity as well as future travels, participants will come away with an insight into some of Scotland’s most fascinating and beautiful places.

Alan Montgomery was born and raised in Scotland but has spent most of his adult life in London. Having achieved an MA in Art History at Glasgow University, he worked for many years in the art world at both an international auction house and an antique dealer. In recent years he has returned to academia, achieving an MA in Classical Civilisation in 2011, and has recently completed a Ph.D. in which he analyzed eighteenth-century attitudes towards the ancient Roman world. In addition to his work for Context Travel, Alan also writes catalog essays on Contemporary Art for a leading auctioneer. Elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 2017, his first book, entitled 'Classical Caledonia', was published by Edinburgh University Press in August 2020.

This conversation is suitable for all ages.

90 minutes, including a 30 minute Q&A.

Customer Reviews

Based on 3 reviews
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L
L.S. (Martinez, US)
An Enjoyable Presentation

I thoroughly enjoyed this journey through some of the wonderful properties of the National Trust.

M
Mary S (Vancouver, CA)

An interesting look at a diverse selection of National Trust sites in Scotland.

S
Suzette Shelmire (Oxford, US)
Scotlands treaasures

Dr. Montgomery is my favorite! He is educational, entertaining and I come away from his lectures feeling a lot smarter!!

Customer Reviews

Based on 3 reviews
100%
(3)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
L
L.S. (Martinez, US)
An Enjoyable Presentation

I thoroughly enjoyed this journey through some of the wonderful properties of the National Trust.

M
Mary S (Vancouver, CA)

An interesting look at a diverse selection of National Trust sites in Scotland.

S
Suzette Shelmire (Oxford, US)
Scotlands treaasures

Dr. Montgomery is my favorite! He is educational, entertaining and I come away from his lectures feeling a lot smarter!!