IT IS already part of Scottish history - and now the signs, symbols, key artefacts and even cakes related to the Scottish independence referendum campaign are to be acquired by one of the UK's most distinguished museums.
The posters, badges and even polling cards from the referendum are among items likely to be collected by the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) in London as part of its new Rapid Response Collecting initiative, which allows the museum to buy contemporary objects that make an impact on modern society.
Corinna Gardner, curator of contemporary product design at the museum, said the V&A would welcome suggestions from the public about which paraphanelia would be the best objects for the museum to collect to mark the historic vote in its modern archives.
The V&A has recently purchased an Ikea soft toy, a 3D-printed gun, a wrist computer and a piece of lift cable as part of its new strategy.
Objects bought or collected under the new strategy of collecting modern items of striking design or social impact could well end up displayed at the new £45 million V&A that is being built on Dundee's waterfront.
Ms Gardner said: "We are looking for objects that are shaping our lives and the way we live together.
"The independence referendum is obviously a very important event in our time and we are very much keeping our eyes and our ears open for the objects that might define it for us.
"It has to have something where a distinctive design and an impact come together - we are now going through the process of finding them."
Ms Gardner said these could involve the omnipresent Yes or No Thanks badges, window posters or even the starkly simple referendum polling card.
Another idea has been the Yes and No cupcakes popularised by Cuckoo's Bakery in Dundas Street, Edinburgh.
"We don't necessarily have to purchase them, they could be donated," she added. "And we welcome suggestions.
"The cakes are the type of things that we will consider."
The Rapid Response Collecting scheme means that the museum, that used to wait for decades or longer for time to pass before purchasing or collecting material can be more "responsive to global events, technological advances, political changes or pop cultural phenomena that have an impact on art, design and architecture."
The museum believes that the collecting will leave a legacy of objects that will help future visitors to "access material culture of the 21st century".
Kieran Long, senior curator of contemporary architecture, design and digital at the museum, said: "The V&A has always strived to understand social history through objects of design, art and architecture, and with this new strategy we are bringing that social commitment to bear on the contemporary world."
In addition to memorabilia from the referendum campaign, the other modern items collected by the V&A include:
l An Ikea cuddly wolf toy which became a symbol of protest after one was thrown by an anti-government protester at Hong Kong's leader CY Leung last December.
l A lift cable called the Kone UltraRope, made from a new material which enables lifts to travel 1,000 metres in a single run.
l A 3D printed gun designed by Cody Wilson, a Texan law student, which the museum says, "upended discussions about the benefits of new manufacturing technologies and the unregulated sharing of designs online".
l A wrist-worn computer, the Motorola 'WT41N0', used in large-scale warehouse operations to allocated and monitor tasks as they are completed by employees.
l A pair of Primark cargo trousers made in the Rana Plaza factory complex in Bangladesh, which collapsed in 2013 killing more than 1,100 workers.
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