Vernacular architecture follows traditions passed down from person to person, generation to generation, at any level of society.
The buildings that attract our interest vary in size and construction from small, temporary shelters, through cottages, tenements and farm steadings, to large, enduring tower houses. Usage is likewise diverse, including seasonal shelters, permanent dwellings of all sizes, farms, smithies, watermills and larger industrial concerns.
They are found throughout the country, in both rural and urban settings, and represent many aspects of our history, and of Scotland’s identity. What they all have in common is their construction from local materials using local methods, resulting in characteristics that reflect their environments, so that they sit comfortably within the landscape.
The 2020 SVBWG AGM and Annual Conference will be held on 7 May 2020. The theme is 'Interpreting Buildings' and the conference will be held in Edinburgh and Dunbar. Find out more on our Events page.
The latest issue includes articles on urban vernacular houses, early flatting in Scotland, 16/17th-century merchants’ premises, the brick and tile manufacturing industry of Scotland, a rural water mill in Baldernock.
Join the SVBWG and get involved with Scotland's vernacular buildings. Members receive a free copy of our annual journal Vernacular Building. Discounts are available - find out more on our Membership page.
SVBWG, National Museums of Scotland, c/o D Kidd, Chambers Street, Edinburgh EH1 1JFEmail: info@svbwg.org.uk | Scottish Charity SCO 10835