Glasgow School of Art is searching for the descendants of a group of artists known as the Glasgow Girls.

The women became household names in the late 19th and early 20th century for their intricate Celtic designs.

Their work became known as the Glasgow style and now the race is on to find relatives of the lesser known Glasgow Girls as their relatives may still own the copyright.

DACS has been taking the lead on the search for the Glasgow Girls .

In the UK and parts of Europe, artists or their heirs are entitled to a royalty when their copyright protected work resells on the art market. Known as the Artist's Resale Right(ARR), DACS has thousands of pounds in royalties to pay to their eligible heirs and beneficiaries.

Now time is running out to unite these heirs with the ARR royalties owed to them. After six years, where heirs aren't found, DACS currently returns the royalties to the gallery, auction house or dealer that sold the work.

If the copyright owners do not come forward, the money is returned to the seller.

Susannah Waters, archives and collections manager, is leading the search for the Glasgow Girls' families.

Ms Waters said: "Some of the Glasgow Girls became very famous and we're very lucky to still be in touch with their families.

"However, there are many other pieces we still have from others who perhaps aren't as well known, and we don't know much about them.

"We'd like to see if we can find family for them to learn more about their lives before and after art school and more about their works."

Women had very few education options in 1890 but attending art school was one of them.

The women were allowed to flourish under the fairly liberal guidance of school head Francis Henry Newbery.

Allowed to take the same classes as men, the young women gained practical skills from which they could make a living.