The famous Italian Chapel in Orkney will soon have full-time custodians to protect it for years to come.
Visitors will also be charged an admission fee for the first time, which curators said will help cover the costs of employing staff next year.
The Roman Catholic chapel, on the uninhabited island of Lamb Holm, was built by Italian prisoners of war in 1943 and is one of Orkney’s top visitor attractions.
But last year, thieves broke into the intricately-decorated chapel, and stole three hand-carved wooden plaques.
And while the attraction is welcoming more visitors than ever, their presence is causing the building to deteriorate – due to the heat, and some people rubbing the walls.
Gary Gibson, chairman of the Italian Chapel preservation committee, said: “Over the past year in particular, we have seen unprecedented numbers of people visiting the chapel and the preservation committee is deeply concerned over the impact this is having on the delicate fabric of the building.
“Maintaining and resorting the internal decoration of the chapel has been an ongoing process, but the deterioration is now visibly accelerating because of the large volume of people entering the building at the same time.”
“It is therefore vital we try and control throughout the chapel and avoid overcrowding within what is a very small and fragile space.”
He added the chapel did not receive funding to assist with its upkeep, but relied instead on donations by visitors.
He said the “modest admission charge” would allow the committee to pay for full-time custodians.