Discover Edinburgh - Discover Scotland: Experience the Best of Scotland - page 163

Surrounding the church, hemmed in by high walls and overlooked by the brooding
presence of the castle, Greyfriars Kirkyard is one of Edinburgh's most evocative
cemeteries, a peaceful green oasis dotted with elaborate monuments. Many famous Edin-
burgh names are buried here, including the poet Allan Ramsay (1686-1758), architect
William Adam (1689-1748) and William Smellie (1740-95), the editor of the first edition
of the Encyclopedia Britannica .
If you want to experience the graveyard at its scariest - inside a burial vault, in the
dark, at night - go on one of Black Hart Storytellers' ( Click here ) guided tours.

GREYFRIARS BOBBY STATUE
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The memorials inside Greyfriars Kirkyard are interesting, but the one that draws the
biggest crowds is outside, opposite the pub beside the kirkyard gate. It's the tiny statue of
Greyfriars Bobby, a Skye terrier who, from 1858 to 1872, maintained a vigil over the
grave of his master, an Edinburgh police officer. The story was immortalised in a novel by
Eleanor Atkinson in 1912, and in 1963 was made into a movie by - who else? - Walt Dis-
ney. Bobby's own grave, marked by a small, pink granite stone, is just inside the entrance
to the kirkyard. You can see his original collar and bowl in the Museum of Edinburgh (
Click here ) .

| Monument

SURGEONS' HALL MUSEUMS
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| Museum

( www.museum.rcsed.ac.uk ; Nicolson St; adult/child £5/3; noon-4pm Mon-Fri, plus Sat & Sun Apr-Oct)
These fascinating museums take a look at surgery in Scotland from the 15th century -
when barbers supplemented their income with bloodletting, amputations and other surgic-
al procedures - to the present day. The highlight is the exhibit on Burke and Hare ,
which includes Burke's death mask and a pocketbook bound in his skin.