This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Antonine Wall World Heritage Site
24/03/2004
European heritage experts have met in Scotland to
mark the start of abid to win World Heritage Site status for the
Antonine Wall, the most northerly boundary of the Roman
Empire.
Culture Minister Frank McAveety, who hosted a
reception for the delegates, wished the team luck in
what will be the first ever bid to involve more than
one country.
He said:
"If this bid is successful the Antonine Wall will
join the World Heritage Site designation forHadrian's Wall. Successful bids fromAustria,GermanyandSlovakiawill see their sections of the frontier added to the
designation, emphasising our shared history. I am
particularly pleased that we are working closely with our
European counterparts to make this trans-european bid a success.
"Scotlandalready has four World Heritage Sites that are
recognised around the world, a truly impressive achievement
and very important to this country in cultural and economic
terms. In 2002 visitors spent £4.5 billion, making
itScotland's biggest industry and 83% of tourists from overseas
visited a historic site during their stay. Improving the
quality and image of our product will ensure our place in
this competitive market."
The Antonine Wall stretches from
Bo'ness on the River Forth to Old Kirkpatrick on the Clyde
and is 37 miles in length. The 'wall' consists of a turf
rampart on a stone base, fronted by a wide and deep ditch.
Forts linked by a road, were built at roughly two-mile
intervals.
It was only occupied for a generation,
being abandoned soon after 160 A.D. About two-thirds of the
Wall survives today, the rest has been lost to housing,
factories and roads. Four miles of the Antonine Wall and
four forts are in the care of Scottish Ministers and looked
after by Historic Scotland.
Scotland currently has four World
Heritage Sites.
The Heart of Neolithic
Orkney
St Kilda Archipelago
Edinburgh Old and New
Towns
New Lanark