Two ruined Scottish castles have been brought back to life, thanks to some ingenious computer experts.
Our country is rightly known for its great stately houses, castles and churches – and its ruins are also worthy of celebration.
There is something wonderful about visiting castles. As you walk through the ruins, your imagination begins to fill in the blanks about the people who lived there, the history of the place and the architectural details that have been lost.
But what if you didn’t need to use your imagination? Whereas many castles have been rebuilt and maintained, there are some wonderful ones that have been battered and bruised by the weather – they are ruined and need a lot of work to get back to their original glory.
With this project, a selection of ruined castles in Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales have been resurrected, including Bothwell Castle (South Lanarkshire) and Caerlaverock Castle (Dumfries and Galloway).
NeoMam Studios’ goal, as commissioned by On Stride, was to inspire people to rediscover the areas of the UK where they live and to get inspired to travel to those areas that perhaps they’ve not considered visiting before.
Bothwell Castle
A NeoMam Studios spokesman said: ‘When the idea was born, we were trying to find a way of showing a new side of each country, thinking of how we could surprise residents enough for them to see their hometowns in a new light. The concept grew from there. Our focus was to bring these castles to life so that readers could get a better feel of how they all really looked like in their prime.
‘To create an accurate representation of each castle, we worked with architect Jelena Popovic who advised us on the architectural elements that had to be rebuilt. Once all the research was gathered, our design team created 3D models of each of the castles based on stock photos available on Shutterstock.
‘The last step was to combine the architectural drawings with the 3D models into one animated GIF that clearly shows every single detail of the castle’s architecture.’
Caerlaverock Castle
The result, are animated reconstructions that bring these unique castles to life before your very eyes.
Standing on a lovely spot above the River Clyde, Bothwell Castle is one of the largest and finest stone castles in Scotland. One notable features is the ruin of the magnificent moated round tower or donjon, which stands at one end of the courtyard and is unique for Scotland.
Caerlaverock Castle is the only triangular castle in the United Kingdom. Three lengths of defensive curtain wall are linked at their three angles by high corner towers. On the north side is an impressive twin-towered gatehouse, where the Maxwells had their private rooms.
High curtain walls link these towers, enclosing a courtyard; subsidiary buildings have been erected against these walls by a wide moat, beyond which have been earthworks and outer ditches.
Images courtesy of On Stride
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