Discover Edinburgh - Discover Scotland: Experience the Best of Scotland - page 159

| Museum

WRITERS' MUSEUM
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( www.edinburghmuseums.org.uk ; Lady Stair's Close, Lawnmarket; 10am-5pm Mon-Sat year-round,
2-5pm Sun Aug) Tucked down a close just east of Gladstone's Land you'll find Lady Stair's
House (1622), home to this museum which contains manuscripts and memorabilia belong-
ing to three of Scotland's most famous writers: Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott and Robert
Louis Stevenson.

ST GILES CATHEDRAL
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| Church

( www.stgilescathedral.org.uk ; High St; suggested donation £3; 9am-7pm Mon-Fri, to 5pm Sat, 1-5pm
Sun May-Sep, 9am-5pm Mon-Sat, 1-5pm Sun Oct-Apr) Dominating the High St is the great grey
bulk of St Giles Cathedral. Properly called the High Kirk of Edinburgh (it was only a true
cathedral - the seat of a bishop - from 1633 to 1638 and from 1661 to 1689), St Giles
Cathedral was named after the patron saint of cripples and beggars. A Norman-style
church was built here in 1126 but was destroyed by English invaders in 1385; the only
substantial remains are the central piers that support the tower.
The present church dates largely from the 15th century - the beautiful crown spire was
completed in 1495 - but much of it was restored in the 19th century. The interior lacks
grandeur but is rich in history: St Giles was at the heart of the Scottish Reformation, and
John Knox served as minister here from 1559 to 1572. One of the most interesting corners
of the kirk is the Thistle Chapel , built in 1911 for the Knights of the Most Ancient &
Most Noble Order of the Thistle. The elaborately carved Gothic-style stalls have canopies
topped with the helms and arms of the 16 knights - look out for the bagpipe-playing angel
amid the vaulting.
By the side of the street, outside the western door of St Giles, is the Heart of Midlothi-
an , set into the cobblestone paving. This marks the site of the Tolbooth. Built in the 15th
century and demolished in the early 19th century, the Tolbooth served variously as a meet-
ing place for parliament, the town council and the General Assembly of the Reformed
Kirk, before becoming law courts and, finally, a notorious prison and place of execution.
Passers-by traditionally spit on the heart for luck (don't stand downwind!).
At the other end of St Giles is the Mercat Cross , a 19th-century copy of the 1365 ori-
ginal, where merchants and traders met to transact business and royal proclamations were
read.

REAL MARY KING'S CLOSE | Historic Building