Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland

as one of the early curatorial staff employed by the fledgling museum i'm thrilled to see the lady here - and to hear that slowly the value of the museum is being recognised and provided for. it is a true memorial to scotland's industrial past and her miners. willie hall, our late and lamented colliery engineer, would have been shaking his head over a pint at the dean tavern!

worked at "the lady" 1967 until jan 1969, remember on the "backshunt" and the "coupling" with "wee johny" and "big archie"at the pit bottom. also remember a workmate called duncan.i've visited the lady twice since she became a "museum", and she hasn't changed. hope that she lasts for a few more years.congratulations on winning the award--- happy days!

i worked for a number of years in the lady, in the coronation loco and the parrot seams. i worked with a lot of good men in the 60's. when i come back to scotland i always visit the museum and enjoy it greatly and you get a really good meal in the restaurant. i am glad to see that the lady photo has won this event. it would have been a good idea to save one of the street houses and set it up as a typical miners house in the 20's/30's. we lived in fifth street and they were well bult houses even in the 60's.

my grandad robert knox thomson wrkd in lady vic in the 60s he died a young man in his 40s he was known as black bob and i know myself he would b so proud

As the Archaeological Advisor for Midlothian I am delighted at this result.. Archaeology and Heritage does not have to old, it has to be relevant .. Scotland does have a lot to offer from early inhabitants to modern times. This is a celebration of amore than a single phase of our history, with mining recorded in Midlothian stretching back at least a thousand years. Many of us remember the closures, and so it is good to recognise a monument to our past, that we remember something in our own lifetime and look to the future. This is a world class museum. Midlothian has something to offer averyone.. from Standing stones, Roman remains and Medieval Castles, but most relevant to those who worked, lived and even died in these pits.. the pits

Congratulations on winning.

My grandfather, John Aikman, died underground in the Lady Victoria on 8th November 1927.

God bless the miners.

Im with donnie its hardly a comparison with settlements over 5000 years old, Cant see the tour buses queuing up at the coalshed

Donnie, No, not a joke- go there with an open mind and learn- I did and was very surprised!

There were hundreds of pit heads, monuments to the 20% of Scots who toiled to fuel the nation. There is only the one, now rightly recognized.

Why were all the rest destroyed at great expense? Who is guilty of ethnocide?

Is this a joke? Scotland has so much to offer than this.