THIEVES have stolen thousands of pounds worth of goods after targeting Scotland's most historic properties.

Gangs have swiped valuable items from ancient homes, churches and castles run by conservation body Historic Scotland.

The places which have fallen victim to theft include popular visitor attractions such as Stirling Castle, Doune Castle in Perthshire and Dunfermline Palace and Abbey.

The robbers' most popular item is expensive lead from the roof of the buildings which can be sold on at high prices to unscrupulous scrap dealers.

However, other items which have been swiped include iPads, works of arts, metal signs and gardening equipment.

Figures released by Historic Scotland under freedom of information laws show that over the last five years goods worth a total of £25,700 have been stolen from properties under their care.

They were unable to provide values for some of the items taken, meaning the true total is likely to be higher.

Lead worth £14,000 was stolen from Huntly Castle in Aberdeenshire in 2012 and has never been recovered.

Four iPads worth £1,000 were stolen from Stirling Castle and laptops were also swiped from Blackness Castle and Castle Campbell.

At Doune Castle, thieves stole a stone statue and six wooden sculptures that were placed along paths next to a river at the property.

Two of the sculptures were of Robert the Bruce and police said they were each worth a four-figure sum.

Among the more bizarre items stolen were a metal toilet sign worth £250 taken from Inchmahome Priory in Port of Menteith, Stirlingshire, a fire blanket from Dumfermline Palace and Abbey and a 'Keep off the grass' sign from Aberdour Castle in Fife.

A spokesman for Historic Scotland said: "There are over 340 properties and sites in our care across Scotland, many of which attract high numbers of visitors, so it's a considerable challenge to prevent all attempts of theft across the estate.

"However, our staff continually strive to maintain the highest possible standards of security on our sites and all of our key sites are manned all year round.

"It's thanks in part to staff vigilance that the numbers of thefts has been relatively low over the past five years although, sadly, isolated incidents do still occur."