Rebirth of a Palace: The Royal Court at Stirling Castle

Rebirth of a Palace: The Royal Court at Stirling Castle by Harrison, John. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9781849170550.

Stirling Palace is one of the finest Renaissance buildings now surviving in Britain. It was begun around 1538 for Scotlands ambitious young king, James V, and his new wife, Mary of Guise. In 2001 Historic Scotland launched the Stirling Castle Project, a major programme of conservation, research and re-presentation. Specialist craftsmen and women have created the Palace interiors anew, informed by extensive research, and using the most appropriate materials. The highlights of this work are the Unicorn tapestries and the replica Stirling Heads, copied from the wooden roundels that once adorned the Palaces ceiling. In this extensively illustrated book, John G. Harrison explains how revolutionary new ideas coming from Europe, embraced by James and his court, influenced the creation of this magnificent building. He also describes the long, painstaking process that has brought the palace back to life.