Health and safety bans visitors from taking photos at Rosslyn

Published on Tuesday 18 December 2007 21:07

ONE of Scotland's most iconic tourist attractions has imposed a ban on photography – for health and safety reasons.

Rosslyn Chapel is to prevent visitors taking any photographs inside the building for fear they will injure themselves.

Officials say a growing number of people are tripping or falling while trying to take pictures of ornate carvings on the ceiling.

The ban, which is being imposed from January, has been ordered after a health and safety audit.

Part of the reason for the clampdown is said to be the number of cracked or uneven slabs inside the chapel.

Visitor numbers have soared since the building at Roslin, Midlothian, was featured in the best-selling Dan Brown novel The Da Vinci Code, and the subsequent Hollywood film. The climax of the story is set there.

Colin Glynne-Percy, the director of the Rosslyn Chapel Trust, said: "I would hope that people come to see the chapel, not just to video it, so I would expect visitor numbers to be unchanged. The problem is one we have had for a while, because the chapel is quite dimly lit and there are cracked and uneven slabs.

"When you then have a large group of people all wandering around looking at the little screens on digital cameras and not where they are going, it can lead to people tripping and stumbling.

"In the past we have used tape to cordon off some of the worst areas, but we took the decision to have a health and safety review carried out and on the basis of that, it was decided this would be the best course of action."

Owen Thompson, a local councillor, said: "It does seem perhaps a little extreme, and I think it will be a disappointment to a lot of visitors because there is so much interest within the chapel and a lot of people will want to take home their own pictures.

"I do not see it affecting visitor numbers though, as it is such an interesting and historic building."

The chapel, founded in the 15th century, is run by an independent trust, and Historic Scotland, the national heritage agency, has insisted it was not involved in discussions about the photography ban.

There are no restrictions on photography at any of its own attractions.

A spokesman said: "We cannot comment on decisions made for operational reasons at sites which are not ours.

"Historic Scotland, like every operator of visitor attractions, has to keep health and safety under constant review and takes whatever measures are necessary to ensure people's safety."

A spokeswoman for VisitScotland said: "Issues relating to health and safety are an operational matter for the Rosslyn Chapel Trust but we are sure that visitors will be understanding of changes made for good reasons.

"Rosslyn Chapel is a spectacular and fascinating building set in beautiful surroundings and we are confident that it will remain one of the Lothians' most popular attractions."

LAST RESTING PLACE OF RELIGIOUS TREASURES?

FOUNDED in 1446 by Sir William of St Clair, the third and last St Clair Prince of Orkney, Rossyln chapel is said by some writers to have been used by the Knights Templar as a hiding place for dozens of holy relics taken from Jerusalem.

Its deep, sand-filled vaults reputedly contain early gospels, the Ark of the Covenant and even the mummified head of Christ.

Last year, 120,000 people visited the chapel, up from just 30,000 in 2000. This followed the 2003 publication of The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown, which has sold more than 30 million copies. Brown's book and others have theorised that the chapel and its elaborate carvings held hidden treasures.

Director Ron Howard and stars Tom Hanks and Audrey Tatou, spent several days at the chapel filming the movie two years ago.

Publicity around The Da Vinci Code is said to have triggered a new wave of interest in shooting major films in Scotland.