Shinty Heritage

The University Archives is working with the Camanachd Association to digitise the sports visual heritage

The project will digitise a large collection of photographs taken and collected by Donald Mackay, who documented the sport across several decades, both on and off the field. It is the largest single collection of shinty images in existence and documents a key period of the modern game from the early 1970s. His photographs regularly featured in the annual Shinty Yearbook, with his striking image of John Mackenzie of Newtonmore taken at the 1978 Camanachd Cup Final being selected as Scotland’s best sports picture of the year for 1978.

A study in concentration, Donald Mackay’s award-winning photograph of John Mackenzie of Newtonmore at the 1978 Camanachd Cup Final.
The original photograph was cropped by Donald Mackay to remove the wider action on the pitch, bringing Mackenzie’s chase for the ball into focus.

The Stirling ScanStudio will create a brand new digital resource for the Camanachd Association which will provide a range of content for the Sgeul na Camanachd – Shinty’s Story – which Donald helped found, the new National Shinty Exhibition opening in Bught Park Stadium, Inverness in September 2025.

A selection of photographs taken by Donald Mackay at the 1978 Camanachd Cup Final. The match was played at Fort William, Newtonmore beating Kyles Athletic 3-2.
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The Art Collection and the Pathfoot Galleries are fully accredited by Museums Galleries Scotland.