A black and white photograph of house and shops covered in snow.
Scottish Life Archive

Festive scenes from the Scottish Life Archive

These festive snapshots feature wintery rural scenes from across Scotland in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century. Download a greetings card using the button below each image.

Montrave House

A black and white photograph of a woman and children draped in blankets sitting on sleds attached to a horse in a snow covered field.
Photograph likely depicting Lady Henrietta’s children, sledging in the grounds of Montrave House, Fife, in 1900. Reference SLA C27611. Credit: Lady Henrietta Gilmour collection.

Downloads List

Deep snow in Braemar

A black and white photograph of house and shops covered in snow.
Deep snow in Braemar, Aberdeenshire, c.1895. Reference SLA C12573. Credit: Peter M Stewart.

Downloads List

Snow drifts in Braemar

A black and white photograph of a horse with two men clearing a path in a forrest of deep snow.
Snow drifts in Braemar c.1895. Reference SLA C12575. Credit: Peter M Stewart.

Downloads List

Father Christmas in Burntisland

A black and white photograph of a man dressed as Father Christmas.
Mr Henry Watson, dressed up as Father Christmas in Burntisland, Fife, in 1909. Reference SLA 63.16.11A.  Credit: Donated by Miss C. Watson, photographer unknown.

Downloads List

 Horse-drawn sledge

A black and white photograph of a horse drawn carraige in the snow on the grounds of a large estate.
Horse-drawn sledge carrying passengers through the snow at Larchgrove House, Balerno, Midlothian, c.1903. Reference SLA C11195.  Credit: Photographer unknown. 

Downloads List