The contents of a mailboat launched from St Kilda on 29 July last year been discovered on the Norwegian island of Frøya.
The postcards were found by local farmer Knut Wågø, as he walked his dogs on the beach on 2 January 2012. The cards, which had been placed in a traditional St Kildan mailboat, travelled over 600 miles before reaching land.
St Kilda, which is owned and cared for by conservation charity the National Trust for Scotland’s , in the UK’s only Dual World Heritage site, designated for both its natural and cultural characteristics. It is believed that the site was inhabited by humans from prehistoric times until its evacuation in 1930.
A St Kilda mailboat is a wooden 'boat', containing a letter, usually sealed in a cocoa tin or plastic box. Traditionally, a sheep's bladder was used as a float, but it is now a fishing float. The first mailboat was sent out as a distress signal in time of famine by John Sands, a journalist, who was stranded on St Kilda during winter of 1876.
Mailboats are now sent by St Kilda work parties as part of the ritual of visiting St Kilda. They are carried by the Gulf Stream and usually reach land in Scotland or Scandinavia.
St Kilda Property Manager Susan Bain said: “Launching mail boats is a cultural tradition which we keep alive on St Kilda. It reminds us of the remoteness and the difficulties that the islanders faced in communicating with the mainland.
“Nowadays, things are a little different and we have phones and high-
St Kilda mail washes up on Norway 12/1/12