Metal thieves take lightning protection and toilet chain from historic sites

THIEVES left one of Scotland’s most popular buildings vulnerable to lightning strikes after stripping it of copper.

Metal thieves managed to strip Linlithgow Palace of the copper taping used to conduct lightning strikes from its roof to the earth below.

The former royal residence was one of 17 historic sites raided over the past three years.

Criminals carted off heavy stone carvings, Roman artefacts and even fixtures and fittings from historic monuments across the country.

Dryburgh Abbey in the Borders was broken into in 2015 and lost two medieval stone carvings, while nearby Melrose Abbey was robbed of a Roman statuette of a stag and Roman pottery items.

Last year, thieves managed to cart off two heavy “Forest of Dean stone” carvings from Dunkeld Cathedral, while staff at Duff House in Aberdeenshire discovered an antique toilet pull chain had been taken.

Scotland’s historical sites were also the target of scrapmetal thieves, who stripped lead from Deer Abbey in Aberdeenshire and Crossraguel Abbey in Ayrshire.

Metal hand rails were pilfered from Dunstaffnage Castle, Argyll, and Kilchurn Castle on the banks of Loch Awe, while one thief even made off with the main door padlock from Castle Campbell, Clackmannanshire.

In 2015, one thief set their sights slightly lower, making off with 12 packs of toilet roll from Castle Campbell.

Documents released by Historic Environment Scot- land revealed that criminals managed to strip the lightning protection tape from Linlithgow Palace in 2014.

It is understood that the lightning tape, supplied to 37 HES-operated buildings across Scotland by a specialist contractor, was replaced.