MEDIEVAL Viking stones housed in a Glasgow church are in the running to be crowned one of Scotland’s most spectacular hidden gems.

The Govan Stones are sitting in second place in a poll to find the country’s six World Heritage Sites and voting closes in a few days.

More than 8,000 votes have been cast so far for Dig It! 2017, a year-long celebration of archaeology.

Govan Old Church holds 31 medieval stones carved in the Viking era to commemorate the power of those who ruled the Kingdom of Strathclyde.

The collection includes carved crosses and cross shafts, and five Viking hogback stones.

With intricate interlace carving sand warrior figures, the collection’s outstanding piece is the Govan Sarcophagus; the only one of its kind carved from solid stone from pre-Norman, northern Britain.

The Govan Stones Project recently confirmed that the Govan Ferry will continue to run from the Riverside Museum to Govan throughout August.

The team hopes to see the free ferry service continue into September, although this will rely heavily on the success of the on-board donation boxes.

Frazer Capie, Volunteer Co-ordinator for The Govan Stones Project, said: “The free ferry is providing an amazing opportunity for people visiting the Riverside Museum to nip over to Govan and experience the spectacular, but little known, collection of Celtic and Viking Art.

“With only a couple of weeks to go, we really need to rally together to hold onto our spot in the competition.

“It has been great to see the support so far.

“Placing in the top six would mean that we have the opportunity to get the Govan Stones onto the Glasgow tourist map and ensure support for community ventures such as the Govan Ferry.”

Voting for the ‘Scotland in Six - Hidden Gems’ campaign began in June and runs until the end of July on the Dig It! 2017 Facebook album.

The album features photos of the 28 sites and one “like” on the site’s photo equals one vote.

Once the votes have been tallied, Dig It! 2017 will help to celebrate the six winning sites with six different events during Scottish Archaeology Month in September.

To vote for your favourites, visit the Dig It! 2017 Facebook page at Facebook.com/DigIt2017.

The Govan Stones Project is managed by The Govan Heritage Trust SCIO. Govan Heritage Trust was formed in Jan 2015 to rescue two imperilled national assets, the former Govan Old Church and, within it, the Govan Stones. The Trust was formally handed over ownership of the building and collection in August 2016.