A project to conserve the collection of Professor Donald Mackinnon (1839-1914), the University of Edinburgh’s first Professor of Celtic, during an eight-week internship. It includes medieval Gaelic manuscripts, such as a 15^th-century manuscript on medieval physiography and a 16^th-century summary of the Treatise of Maighstir Ricairdi. It also include manuscripts of 18th-century tales and verse, lecture notes on Gaelic literature and grammar, Gaelic versions of classical epics, Gaelic poetry and songs, and religious texts.

Professor Mackinnon meticulously documented Gaelic language, literature, and history and his collection is of national importance for the study of Scotland’s history and culture. It includes primary and secondary sources, and provides insight into the scholarly perspective on Scottish history and culture during the Victorian era and early 20th century, a crucial time in the development of the nation-state political system and national identity across the world. This is also an important period in the development of academic study, and the understanding of how languages evolve and are related to each other. Many of the items demonstrate the religious and political nature of Gaelic Scotland from the 18th to early 20th century, including the translation of the Bible to Gaelic. There is evidence of tension between the linguistic communities in Scotland, and the ongoing stigmatisation of Gaelic speakers, which is an issue that Scotland continues to struggle with today.